Past, Present, and Future
by AngelLove6392
Summary: A new coroner joins their ranks. Someone with a hidden past of their own and someone who affects one of their own like no other.
1. Behind These Hazel Eyes

Seems like just yesterday

Behind These Hazel Eyes

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI, I only own the story. I don't own this song either; Kelly Clarkson does.

Author's Note: I hope you all enjoy the ride. Read and review please!

* * *

The radio crackled on as a slender, long-fingered hand retreated to rest on the mug alongside its twin, a ring glinting in the light. As the first strains of music floated through the speakers clearly, recognition flashed in frighteningly insightful, intelligent, emerald eyes. Pink lips twisted wryly at the bitter irony: the song reflected her thoughts, feelings, and life.

She couldn't help the agony that welled up.

Seems like just yesterday  
You were a part of me  
I used to stand so tall  
I used to be so strong  
Your arms around me tight  
Everything, it felt so right  
Unbreakable, like  
nothin' could go wrong

She could still feel the pain of his betrayal – not that she didn't see it coming. What hurt most was the fact that her traitorous heart still loved him, still missed him. It stung that when things were quiet at night, she could almost hear his voice beside her ear, whispering sweet nothings that made her blush. When left to her own devices, she could see him, his sparkling, mischievous, blue-gray eyes, that wicked grin on his face. Worse, in bed, she could still feel his arms around her, the comforting weight of his body against hers.

Back then, she'd foolishly thought that everything would be all right.

Now I can't breathe  
No, I can't sleep  
I'm barely hanging on

As it was, here she sat at 4 am, curled up on the couch, listening to the early morning radio, nursing a hot cup of tea, wide-awake to the early morning New York traffic. Memories assaulted her, challenging the delicate balance of her emotions. Of her heart. She was barely clinging from the edge as it was. It had taken her longer than she'd wanted to recover from that fall, she wasn't about to go tumbling off that cliff again.

Here I am, once again  
I'm torn into pieces  
Can't deny it, can't pretend  
Just thought you were the one

Brushing a few loose strands from her face, another image of him combing his fingers through her rich oak-brown hair as they lazed around in the grass during the summer rent her heart into two again. Well, another piece anyway, she didn't know how many pieces her heart was in anymore. She'd envisioned them gray-haired and happily in love while their grandkids danced around them, laughing joyfully. She thought he would be the one she'd marry. Hell, she even thought the feeling was mutual.

But she'd been wrong.

Broken up, deep inside  
But you won't get to see  
The tears I cry  
Behind these hazel eyes

Forcefully swallowing the ridiculous tears that threatened to spill, she choked back a sob. She thought she'd numbed herself from the pain; yet, she felt it tearing her apart. She wouldn't cry though, she refused to. Having spilled so many tears already, she would rather gouge her eyes out than cry another drop. She hadn't let him see her tears back then and she wouldn't now.

I told you everything  
Opened up and let you in  
You made me feel alright  
For once in my life  
Now all that's left of me  
Is what I pretend to be  
So together, but so broken up inside  
'Cause I can't breathe  
No, I can't sleep  
I'm barely hangin' on

As children, she'd told him nearly everything. As a teenager, she'd let him in when she'd closed everyone else off. Because he made her feel special – like a girl. He brought her out of her shell, but when he left, he took a part of her with him. Now standing in her place, was merely a shadow of who she used to be, copying her movements, but nothing else, not her smile, not her laugh, nothing.

Here I am, once again  
I'm torn into pieces  
Can't deny it, can't pretend  
Just thought you were the one  
Broken up, deep inside  
But you won't get to see  
the tears I cry  
Behind these hazel eyes

She wanted to rage at the unfairness of it all, but she didn't. She'd learned her mistake: she wore her heart on her sleeve for the whole world to see, that was her weakness – and she'd vowed to never again hand her enemies ammo on a silver platter that they'd use to destroy her with delight. To never leave herself open to that kind of torture.

To never, open her heart to anyone.

Swallow me then spit me out  
For hating you, I blame myself  
Seeing you it kills me now  
No, I don't cry on the outside  
Anymore,anymore...

Wallowing in bitter scorn, she absentmindedly turned on the muted TV to the news channel. She hated herself for hating him, for giving him control over her. Finally paying attention to the news, her tattered heart died slowly. Cameras flashed in his face as his mouth mouthed the words 'no comment' and 'ongoing investigation'. Her heart was bleeding, but her face remained cold and impassive. She no longer let her heart rule. Her head ruled with chilling clarity, clamping down on her emotions.

Here I am, once again  
I'm torn into pieces  
Can't deny it, can't pretend  
Just thought you were the one  
Broken up, deep inside  
But you won't get to see  
the tears I cry  
Behind these hazel eyes

Her mind gleefully reminded her of the joy on his face as he scooped the beautiful redhead into his arms for a kiss. Her heart clenched painfully even though that scene had appeared to get her heart to stop loving him. She'd quickly turned around and walked away when she caught his eye and hoped he'd write it off as a bad nightmare. She'd stumbled blindly through the rest of her day, forcing smiles and small talk when all she wanted to do was to go home. But when she got home, all she felt was pain: he used to look at her like that. That smile used to solely reserved for her. He used to hold her like that.

She used to be the only one that could bring him that much joy. But all that changed.

Here I am, once again  
I'm torn into pieces  
Can't deny it, can't pretend  
Just thought you were the one  
Broken up, deep inside  
But you won't get to see  
The tears I cry  
Behind these hazel eyes

Everything's changed, she realized. He'd been changing before her eyes and she'd been blind to it. She promised herself never to trust so blindly again. Or fall so hard. But then, the latter wasn't a choice: she couldn't fall for someone else when the shattered pieces of her heart still belonged to him. After that episode, she'd moved to Las Vegas for a job in the Forensics Lab. She had no problem adjusting, she adapted like a chameleon.

9 months later, here she was, back in the place that had caused her so much heartache. She was such a glutton for punishment. She sipped at her, now cold, cup of tea and looked up as the clock on the wall struck 5 o'clock. She heard a soft padding in the hallway even before she heard the voice.

"Mommy?" The woman looked over at the little girl standing in the doorway to the living room, rubbing her eyes sleepily, her favorite teddy bear dangling from her right hand. Smiling lovingly, she her cup on the coaster and beckoned for the little girl, "Come here, sweetheart." The little girl went obligingly into the woman's open arms as she wrapped her own around her mother's waist. As she inhaled the familiar smell of her beloved daughter, she felt the warmth all the way to her toes; her little girl was the only other person aside from Papi whose love she would never have to question. At the thought of her grandfather, the smile in her eyes brightened, they would see him again this weekend.

When she'd moved to the city, her grandfather had opted to stay out in the countryside, at the family ranch. Despite his reassurances, her grandfather was still an ailing elderly and needed someone to take care of him. He'd protested when she'd firmly insisted on getting up at the crack of dawn to drive 6 hours down to spend the weekend. She put her foot down and ignored him for once in her life.

Nuzzling her daughter's neck playfully, she tickled the 7 year-old lightly as her daughter giggled uncontrollably, not loud enough to wake her neighbors but not quiet either. She chuckled. Some days, her daughter and grandfather were the only things that kept her going.

And she'd be damned if she'd let anyone take either of them away or hurt them.


	2. Old Friends and Foes

* * *

I will not make the same

Old Friends and Foes

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot and my own characters.

Author's Note: I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter and it wasn't too vague, read and review!

* * *

Don ducked under the yellow crime scene tape and into the hotel room where the CSU milled about, snapping photos, bagging evidence from the crime scene as Danny stood and Mac crouched by the body, conversing. Mac stood as Don neared, notepad in hand.

"I asked around, nobody heard a thing last night and the concierge doesn't remember if the vic was alone or not, said he had to take a 'bathroom break'. So much for making our jobs easier." Mac looked back at the vic, "They never make it easy."

"I'll tell you something that'll save you some effort, the murder weapon won't be in this room." Don spun around at the too-familiar voice, "Sorry, car accident on the way here," the woman said, tonelessly. In the usual Crime Lab bodysuit, she ducked under the tape and strode briskly over to the body, crouching swiftly and pulling on her medical gloves. Removing the thermometer from the victim's body she murmured, "TOD's about 10 to 12 hours ago. Lacerations all over her body, ones on her wrists and ankles probably from rope, a burn mark at the nape of her neck, bruises along her sides, and fractured fingers. I still have to do the autopsy, but the COD was probably a knife slipped under her ribs and into her heart." She hesitated.

"What is it?" Danny prompted her. She frowned, disturbed, "If I'm not wrong, and I really hope I am, he salted her wounds too."

Danny grimaced, Mac only looked grim. Don didn't know what hit him. He never expected to see _her_ ever and to be honest he wasn't what he felt.

But he sure as hell didn't appreciate her turning his world upside down again.

* * *

Back at the Crime Lab, Mac and Danny were down in the morgue with the new M.E., going over the autopsy. Shiny oak-brown hair pulled up into a shoulder length ponytail and standing at 5'6, all long limbs and slender figure, Elena Marino made quite a picture with her flashing emerald eyes and sardonic smile. Danny put her around 27 years old. She wasn't much of a talker, only speaking when spoken to or when she needed to do her job.

"TOD was near midnight, nothing new there. The wounds were anti-mortem. She got a sharp zap at the base of her skull from a taser to subdue her, then when she was coming to, he used the knife to mutilate her. Her hair's kind of damp, she probably passed out from the pain and the monster dumped water on her to keep her conscious," she told them.

"I also found something interesting," she said, reaching for the baggie on top of the metal cart. She handed it to Danny, who held it up to the light for better examination, "That was stuffed in her mouth. This was the one thing that differed from the other cases with the same M.O. that I've worked on and studied."

There was no mistaking the bloody clump: a note directed at one of their own.

* * *

Don walked into the Mac's office mechanically, but the grave look on the Mac's face snapped him out of his daze. Mac gestured at the empty seat next to _her_. She met his cold gaze impassively, squarely. He stood, suspiciously as he noticed the evidence bag on Mac's table. Mac said, "Flack, this is our new M.E. Elena Marino, Dr. Marino, Detective Don Flack." She stood and shook his hand formally, "Nice to meet you, Detective Flack." He inclined his head as he murmured the appropriate response and they both sat down. He watched her out of the corner of his eye, wondering why she was here, and why was he? Mac nodded towards the evidence bag, signaling for Don to pick it up. Don did so, slowly, warily. The seal was already broken and Don carefully slid the contents onto the table. A bloody note in a clear bag slipped out with a hiss.

Don stopped breathing.

_Surprise, Flack Jr. _

_Remember me?_

_I'm back._

Mac didn't need to say anything to express his question; it showed in his eyes: What was going on? Flack stared at the letter for another minute before dropping it back on the desk. The room had been silent aside from the rustle of paper and plastic, Mac finally said, "Flack?"

"It was my first case as Homicide, the bastard used to be my father's friend, he used his position to get rid of evidence and take out the good cops. We finally caught him when he tried to kill me, went on a chase, caught him, and in the end I was the one that made the arrest. At the trial he said 'I'll be back' then they took him to the van, I thought it was over and done with."

"Antonio Rossi?" Mac turned sharply at Elena's voice. Don didn't look surprised as he nodded. She shook her head softly, "I remember that case. It tore the family apart." Thinking that she had seen the case in the newspapers, Mac settled down for a minute.

"I thought he was sentenced to 25 to life though, convicted for 6 counts of murder, 1 count attempted murder, and obstruction of justice. How did he get out?" Elena asked, frowning. Don blew out a breath, "That would be the million dollar question."

Don and Elena left the office together, before she went the other way to the morgue, she looked at him, "He's targeting the women in your life, in numerical order, he's already up to number four. So you better watch your girlfriend; she's too pretty to lose. I'd talk to Detective Taylor too." Without another glance, she faced forward again and walked off.

At least he hadn't been hallucinating.

Crap! He was going to be in _so_ much trouble.

Either way, she was right. Turning around, he went back to Mac's office and explained the killing pattern. Mac had nodded and had Don write down the names of his girlfriends in the past, starting with the first victim.

Later, when he thought back on his conversation with Elena, he was going to lose, and lose badly.

* * *

Danny found the answer an hour later, going through the newspapers in the last few months, according to the reported timeline Elena provided. There had been a prison fire and the two prisoners managed to escape in the chaos a week prior to the first murder.

He found Mac numbering things on the wall map and a pregnant Stella sitting in his chair behind the desk. Mac paused and beckoned at the door, Danny took that as a sign to go in.

"Hey, Stel, how's Mac Jr. doin'?"

"He's fine, playing football in my stomach and keeping me awake at night, eating."

"My mom said pregnant woman needed to eat more."

"I'm eating plenty, don't worry. Mac won't leave me in peace otherwise."

"You find something, Danny?"

"Yeah, I did. Marino gave me an estimated timeline around 3 months. So it looks like the SOB got out of Sing Sing when the place caught on fire during a prison breakout a week before the first murder."

"Which means he's had two months to do whatever he needs to do to hide from us, great."

* * *

Don slammed his locker door, disgruntled and angry. He hadn't counted on seeing _her_ again, it'd been so long since the last time they'd crossed paths. But what made him mad, was that she could bring herself to treat him like an utter stranger.

Okay, so maybe he deserved it. It scared him, how much he cared, and how different she'd become. He didn't like the iron control she had over herself, or him. He shouldn't be thinking about her, he had a loving girlfriend for heaven's sake. In his car though, before he pulled out of the precinct, pain slammed into him with force of a train; she'd told him the bastard was targeting the woman in his life, she'd said he was up to number four: she'd excluded herself entirely.

Because she was number one.

* * *

Elena silently cheered herself as she walked out the Lab's main entrance; she'd gotten through the day, meeting him and talking to him, without a crack in her composure, even though her knees wanted to give out on her badly. She made it to her car against the chilly New York wind and slid in rapidly before she drove off to pick her daughter up from school. She was technically off-duty until another autopsy needed to be done, then they'd call her in, but by then she'd have food at home for her little one and she could stay home by herself.

She parallel parked by the school like the other parents already there and leaned against the side of her car, breathing in the last breaths of winter and waiting for her daughter. A few minutes later, the bell rang and the escalating sound of children's laughter and screams broke through the double doors. She smiled gently as her little girl charged down the stairs and laughed as she threw herself into her mother's arms.

"Alexandra Grace, don't run down the stairs like that, you could've gotten hurt," Elena scolded, without heat. Allie, as she was usually called, smiled sheepishly and scratched her head apologetically, "Sorry, mommy." Elena knelt down to readjust Allie's hat, "Just don't do it again." Allie beamed at her mom and scampered into the backseat after handing her backpack to her mom, and buckled her seatbelt, "Let's go to the store."


	3. Because Of You

Because of You

Because Of You

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI: NY, nor do I own this song, Kelly Clarkson owns sole copyright.

Author's Note: I hope you've all enjoyed the story so far. I had a great time thinking up the plot.

* * *

Elena pushed the cart behind her jubilant daughter as Allie skipped down the aisle, grinning. They were in the fresh groceries section, cart filled with a few bags of turkey and ham and stalks of celery. Elena shook her head at the frightening resemblance when Allie gave her a disgusted pout as she held up a bag of spinach. He always gave her the same look. She ruthlessly clamped that lid shut again – until Allie bumped into someone.

Bumped into _him_.

I will not make the same  
mistakes that you did  
I will not let myself  
Cause my heart so much misery  
I will not break the way you did,  
You fell so hard  
I've learned the hard way  
To never let it get that far

Devin had insisted on making dinner tonight – her first attempt. And so here Don was an hour later while his girlfriend guessed at what she needed because Devin had forgotten the instruction sheet she'd printed off the Internet. He hadn't expected to see her here. Neither had she. Well, if she could pretend he was a stranger, he could too. He looked down at the little girl he'd bumped into. The girl with sparkling silver-blue eyes that looked oddly familiar.

"I'm sorry," they both said at the same time. The little girl giggled and Don chuckled.

Because of you  
I never stray too far from the sidewalk  
Because of you  
I learned to play on the safe  
side so I don't get hurt

To say that Elena was slightly disturbed by the scene was putting it mildly. This reminded her of the reasons she wanted to forget her anger, her hurt, which did not make her happy.

Because of you  
I find it hard to trust  
not only me, but everyone  
around me  
Because of you  
I am afraid

Elena mentally shrugged, calculating the number of dates she'd turned down just in the last year because she refused to put her trust in the male species, Papi was the only male on earth that she never had to doubt. She wasn't going to fool herself, they'd only asked her out because she'd turned them down, she was no exotic beauty nor was she special. She couldn't even trust her own judgment, well, aside from her job that is.

"Hey there, kiddo, what's your name?"

"Alexandra Grace when mommy's cross, but when she's not, Allie." Don's smile was strained, Elena could see that, "That's a pretty name, my name's Don."

I lose my way  
And it's not too long  
before you point it out  
I cannot cry  
Because I know that's  
weakness in your eyes

I'm forced to fake  
A smile, a laugh everyday of my life  
My heart can't possibly break  
When it wasn't even whole to start with

She was _not_ going to be intimidated by his cold stare, so she returned it with a pleasant smile – a brittle one, but it was one nonetheless. Allie, bless her heart chose the same moment to ask Don, "You know my mommy?" Her little darling was nothing if not perceptive and she saw the realization dawn in his eyes as his gaze fell to the ring on her finger. No words were necessary, Elena knew that Don thought she was already married and Allie was the product of that marriage.

How far he was from the truth.

Then again, it wasn't that far off.

Because of you  
I never stray too far from the sidewalk  
Because of you  
I learned to play on the safe  
side so I don't get hurt

Because of you  
I find it hard to trust  
not only me, but everyone  
around me  
Because of you  
I am afraid

Once burned, twice shy. Elena only needed to learn that lesson once before it took root in her heart and never left. It was why she never trusted another soul in the universe except her grandfather. And even he didn't know everything about his granddaughter.

I watched you die  
I heard you cry every  
night in your sleep  
I was so young  
You should have known better  
than to lean on me

As he watched her, Don noticed something in those emerald eyes, even wiser than she'd already been and less lively, less like the Elena Marino he'd been friends with.

Elena was slightly unnerved by Don's perusal, those flashing blue-gray eyes of his seemed to possess the ability to see all the way down to her soul. Not at all comforting. But she also knew that Don was no longer the same Don she once knew, because as a cop, the harsh reality of life killed whatever naïveté he had. But then, she never had any in the first place and he very little.

You never thought of anyone else  
You just saw your pain  
And now I cry in the middle of the night  
For that same damn thing

Because of you  
I never stray too far from the sidewalk  
Because of you  
I learned to play on the safe  
side so I don't get hurt

Elena recalled the words Don had thrown at her the last time they'd met 7 years ago.

"_You're hiding something, you're supposed to trust me, but I feel like I'm the one going out on a limb here, you're not giving me all of you. It's not working."_

She stiffened her spine.

Because of you  
I try my hardest just to  
forget everything  
Because of you  
I don't know how to let anyone else in

She'd moved away as soon as she had the chance and if not for Papi's insistence, she wouldn't even return to her childhood home. She'd gone to lengths to bury her past and start a new life, cutting off the little contact she'd had with family members and such, save for Papi. She knew that being a loner wasn't the best thing in the world, but she simply didn't understand the meaning of communication. Hard as it was, she was trying to raise Allie to be her opposite, to be friendly and open. She didn't have any skeletons in her closet and Elena wanted to keep it that way.

Because of you  
I'm ashamed of my life  
because it's empty  
Because of you  
I am afraid

Because of you  
Because of you

Don and Allie were still chatting animatedly about how disgusting spinach was with Elena trying not to laugh when Devin came up to the trio. Elena had no problem keeping a straight face. Don smiled and laughed naturally with Allie, it was hard to believe they'd just met. Elena saw Devin freeze for a fraction of a second even as her beautiful face hardened, she faked a smile, "Don, honey, I found everything." Don glanced her way in acknowledgement before Allie claimed his attention again.

"And who is this?"

"My daughter," Elena cut in, "I work at the Lab. Today was my first day." She'd thrown the last part in there to reassure the other woman that she was no threat in regards to Don. Devin never took her eyes off Allie, but she nodded pleasantly, too pleasantly.

"You two know each other then, we should get together for dinner someday." Elena didn't need to ask to know a barb when it stared her in the face. A perfectly civil smile curving her pink lips, she gently interrupted Allie, "Sweetie, Don probably needs to get home to eat now, why don't we go ahead and finish our groceries, you did say you wanted pasta tonight."

"Ooh, really?! Fettuccini?"

"Really, really. Pinky promise, but we have to get home soon or I won't have time to cook."

"Okay," Allie said, turning back to Don, "bye bye, we have to go now."

"I know; fettuccini's my favorite too. See ya around kiddo," Don replied, ruffling her hair. She grinned at him before skipping off ahead of Elena again. Elena smiled and went after her little girl, heart thumping nervously.

* * *

It didn't come as a surprise to Elena when she got a call from Devin to meet her by the ferry. She went, it wasn't as if the other woman would throw her over the railing. So bundled, in her scarf, sweater, and long-coat, she braved the bitter cold wind as she waited for the redhead.

"He doesn't know does he?" Elena wasn't startled and didn't have to turn around to answer, "No, he doesn't, and he probably never will."

"You're not trying to get back with Don? I find that a little hard to believe."

"Believe it or not, that's the truth, I severed all ties with him 7 years ago, I'm not planning on retying the one with Allie, she may be his daughter, but as far as he's concerned, I'm married and Allie is proof of that."


	4. Problematic Solutions

Problematic Solutions

Problematic Solutions

Disclaimer: I only own the plot, Elena, Alexandra Grace, and Lin.

Author's Note: I'd much appreciate reviews please. It's just that little button at the bottom. BTW, if you haven't read "The Wings of a Whisper" Lin is heir to that legacy, but you needn't read it to understand this story.

* * *

An hour later in the warmth of the autopsy room, Elena thought back on the agreement she and Devin had come to an hour earlier.

* * *

"_Promise me you won't tell Don about your daughter."_

"_You already said my daughter, tell him what about her?"_

_Silence_

"_You don't have to worry, I don't plan on being anywhere near him more than necessary."_

* * *

Problem was, she hadn't considered how serious the repercussions would be. She had forgotten the _slight _issue that her daughter absolutely _adored_ Don. Allie had talked nonstop about Uncle Don, asking Elena all sorts of questions that Elena hadn't wanted to answer because they reminded her of things she'd rather not remember. But that hadn't been the kicker, the real rocker came _after_ dinner and a bath. Right before Allie had fallen asleep, her muffled musing was what had sent the blood draining from Elena's face: _"I wish Uncle Don was my daddy."_

She would have fallen over if she'd been standing.

Dear gods, Elena had hoped the daddy issue wouldn't come up, that was just her wishful thinking. She'd felt a rush of guilt then, but she couldn't help that, she wasn't worried that Don would hate Allie when he found out, oh no, that was definitely not the problem. Quite the contrary since Don was half-Italian and half-Irish, both of which have _strong_ familial ties and love expanding their family, Allie being Don's daughter would make him delirious with joy, though she suspected that once his honor-bound duty required him to marry her, it would put more than a small damper on his mood.

Which brought her back to the point that she could not in any way, shape, or form let him know Allie's full name: Alexandra Grace Flack.

* * *

Don wished he that he could read females' mind and even more that they could be less complicated. When he and Devin had gone back to her apartment last night after their run-in with Elena and Allie, she'd been withdrawn and cool towards him, yet today she'd been enthusiastic in greeting him when he'd picked her up for dinner.

It was now, as he sat in one of these fancy restaurants that Devin adored, that he squirmed uncomfortably, feeling entirely underdressed. But eating at some fancy place that he loathed was a small price to pay if it distracted Devin from her goal to cook until she learned how to make a 6-course meal successfully, Don being the guinea pig. He honestly wondered how he managed to swallow whatever it was she'd been trying to make and not heave it up the minute it reached his stomach. He'd gone home and took some antacid pills to quell his rebelling digestive system that threatened to go on strike every time he thought about Devin's culinary skills.

Danny had dropped by and laughed at him before taking pity on him and boiled a kettle of tea, something, Don was sure, that Lin had taught him. Regardless, his friend stayed long enough to ensure that he wasn't walking the borderline of life and death before he left to meet up with Lindsay. He still couldn't be sure who changed them more, their surrogate little sister or their significant others. Or as Lin was so prone to correct them, their _right_ significant others.

He groaned as his gut clenched again, _she_ probably would've known what to do.

* * *

He'd been watching the redheaded whore for the past few days, flaunting her body to his dear detective Flack and using underhanded ways to test the poor man's fidelity. Oh yes, he'd seen that meeting with the brunette at the ferry.

He scoffed at that; it wouldn't be that easy to throw him off track, killing that emerald-eyed M.E. wouldn't cause Flack any pain, so where would the fun be in doing that? Oh but he was going to enjoy torturing that curvy harlot, he was going to make her scream his name before he cut her up, inch by glorious inch. Just thinking about it made him hard. He licked his lips, waiting patiently in the shadows, like a hyena getting ready to give chase to the gazelle.

* * *

Stella wandered through the maternity ward, stopping by the nursery to look at the newborns. A smile bloomed on her face without her noticing it. She started to turn away from the window as she noticed an infant climbing out of her stroller – a fancy one about 2 feet off the ground. Stella tried to run before remembering she could barely manage a brisk walk.

"Look out!" In that split second, the little baby toppled over the edge of the stroller. Stella froze in terror. Then a light blue blur zoomed into her line of vision and swooped down to safely catch the child and put her back in her stroller, strapping her in properly. The child cooed happily, oblivious to the tantamount tension she'd just caused.

Stella then turned to study the woman in a baby blue button-down shirt, white tank top, faded jeans, and white tennis shoes. Her oak-brown curls were pulled up into a half-ponytail and her sparkling emerald eyes twinkled in relief as she said to the child, "You're going to be a troublemaker when you get older." She turned to Stella, "Are you all right?" Stella blinked out of her shock, "I think so. What kind of parent leaves their baby unattended and unbuckled like that?!"

"Unfortunately, most do," the woman replied dryly as another woman rushed down the corridor with a bottle of milk in her hands. Without asking what happened, the woman pushed the baby away without a by-your-leave. Stella frowned after her, "How rude," she muttered. The woman chuckled, "How does the 2nd trimester feel?"

"Difficult," Stella answered absentmindedly, "So many things you can't do or eat."

"I know the feeling."

"Stella Bonasera." Stella said, still not used to her last name being Taylor now.

"Elena Marino, nice to meet you," Elena replied, smiling. When Elena's last comment finally registered in Stella's mind, she couldn't help her curiosity.

"I have a 7 year-old," Elena said, reading Stella's expression.

"Sorry, you seem so young." Elena didn't take offense to that and smiled lightly. A door on the right side of the hall, where Elena had initially dashed out from, opened and a little girl zoomed straight for Elena. Elena laughed as she swung the little girl up into her arms, "Hey, sweetie, did you behave?"

"Allie was a very good girl. She's caught up on all her shots and everything, so we'll see her back in a year," a nurse told Elena, following Allie. Elena thanked her and turned back to Stella.

"Allie, this is Auntie Stella, say hi."

"Hello," the little girl greeted shyly. Her eyes were a most peculiar shade of blue-gray and her mahogany-brown hair a shade darker than her mother's. A flicker of recognition lanced through Stella's mind, she just couldn't pinpoint _who_ the little girl reminded her of.

"Are you waiting for an appointment?"

"No, I'm actually meeting my husband in the coffee shop across the street in half an hour."

"Ooh, Mommy, can I get some cake?!"

"Well, since you've been such a good girl lately, all right," Elena mock-sighed. Allie giggled, "You're so silly, Mommy." The trio took the elevator down to the ground level before the noises and smells of the Big Apple assaulted them. They crossed the busy street precariously, Elena helping Stella while keeping an eye on Allie. When they managed to get into the coffee shop, it was by pure luck that they managed to snatch the last table right by the window. They laughed as they quickly claimed the spot.

Elena and Allie went to cue up, Elena waving off the money Stella handed her, saying it was her treat. Stella liked the woman and her honesty. She wasn't open by any means, but she wasn't pretentious like the majority population that lived in a big city. Stella watched Elena and Allie amusedly; that was how a mother should be, protective but not smothering, firm but not strict. She watched many of the other customers in line smile at Allie and talk to her, Allie didn't really say anything in return; well, the don't-talk-to-strangers rule was a required.

Stella looked out the window and saw Mac and Don look both ways before half-jogging across the street. They both came in as Elena paid for their stuff, her back turned to the door.

"Uncle Don!" Allie squealed. Elena closed her eyes against her rotten luck. Stella and Mac both looked surprised, Stella that Allie knew Don and Mac that Elena had a daughter. Don spun around quickly as Allie enthusiastically hurled herself at his legs. He caught her before she could try to topple him over and instead she gave him a big bear hug around his neck.

"Dr. Marino," Mac greeted. Allie had Don's undivided attention.

"Detective Taylor," Elena returned.

"No wonder your name was familiar, you're the new M.E.," Stella exclaimed. Elena frowned questioningly, "Stella was a field CSI, now she's working in Trace."

"I hadn't realized Ms. Bonasera was your wife." Mac looked down his nose playfully at Stella, "Are you denying our marriage again?" Stella stuck her tongue out at him, "You know what I don't want to hear it, you never had to change your name; it's hard to get used to!" Elena chuckled quietly. Stella had gone silent, watching Don and Allie. There was something special about that sight. Allie was safely in the crook of his arm even as he laughed. This wasn't a side of Don that Stella was used to seeing.

"You're a natural, Don."


	5. Fateful Circumstances

Fateful Circumstances

Fateful Circumstances

Disclaimer: CBS owns CSI: NY, I don't and probably never will! sob

Author's Note: I might be bias, but this has to be the best fanfic I've ever written! Read and review!

* * *

_Her memory as clear as day, she remembered the very last time he'd turned those blue-gray eyes on her like a pitiful puppy, begging her not to make him eat the spinach on the table. He'd wanted to have lasagna that night and as a health nut, she'd compromised by adding a side-dish of vegetables. She'd laughed resignedly knowing he would always win. She remembered asking him once why he was so averse to eating spinach. He hadn't given her a straight answer, simply replying that he was a strict carnivore and proving his point to her some time later. No matter what, those rare puppy eyes he'd given her haunted her for a long time – and would still haunt her for years to come._

* * *

"Elli?" Her grandfather's voice snapped her out of her reverie.

"Papi, what are you doing out here?! You'll get sick!" Elena scolded, ushering her loving grandfather back into the warm house. Elli was worried about his ailing health, it seemed that every time she saw him he became even more senile, and his heart condition wasn't getting any better. She'd wanted to hire a private nurse to take care of Papi, but Papi wouldn't hear of it, insisting that it was a waste of money. Elena didn't know how she managed to juggle the stress of seeing Don again and her grandfather's stubbornness without losing her mind. Not to mention her daughter's incessant pestering that Uncle Don would be the perfect boyfriend for her mother – where had she learned that word anyway – despite the fact that Elena had reiterated numerous times Don already had a girlfriend. Allie had a tendency to turn deaf at this point.

"Mommy, can we bring Uncle Don here sometime?" Speak of the devil – or the demon in her daughter's case. Papi's deep blue eyes twinkled at his great-granddaughter's insinuation.

"Papi, don't get any ideas," Elena warned sternly, recognizing that shine in his eyes. She turned back to her daughter, "Allie, Uncle Don and I work together, that's all. Besides don't you remember that pretty lady you saw at the grocery store, that's Uncle Don's girlfriend."

"You're prettier than her," Allie and Papi asserted simultaneously.

"Huh, you're just saying that 'cause I'm your granddaughter and your mother," Elli scoffed, adding an eye-roll for emphasis.

"I'm sure Don would agree that you're beautiful," Papi retorted evenly. Elena froze like a statue, "Papi…" She barely managed to control the quiver in her voice. Even to her own ears, her voice sounded strained. Allie, as was her tendency, had gone deaf when Elena mentioned Devin, thankfully hadn't heard anything unusual.

"Allie, why don't you run along and see if the butterflies are out yet?" His great-granddaughter beamed at him and scampered off into the nearby fields where her mother could still keep an eye on her. Giovanni Marino took off his glasses and folded them slowly in his hands as he chose his words carefully.

"Elli, it's been 7 years, you haven't spoken to him nor of him. It's also been years since I've seen my real granddaughter."

"What are you talking about, Papi?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Time can heal a lot of things, maybe even a broken spirit, and on occasion, a broken heart or two, but there are some things that time can't heal or wash away. In that, you resemble your mother."

"I'm _nothing_ like her." Elena refuted with cold rage.

"You are not," Giovanni agreed solemnly, "but your nature to love that one person so completely is exactly like your mother. That you cannot deny. We are warm-blooded creatures, my beauty, we are human."

"I get that we all have faults, Papi, but you know that's not an excuse." Giovanni nodded regretfully, "It is not, what was done was unforgivable, there is no excuse for that. But Don…"

"Papi, what's done is done and what is over should be left that way. That ship sailed a long time ago. Like he said, it wasn't working."

"Elli, you never could lie to me, no matter how unreadable you are. I know very well, just as you do, why he broke up with you."

"Then you know he dumped me for the mayor's perfect, platinum blond daughter. Why then, should I have told or tell him that Allie's his daughter." Her grandfather smiled sadly, "That is because, my dear one, that you have too big of a heart to be selfish. You could have told him the day you broke up that you were pregnant and he would have married you right away, but you did not, instead you came home."

"And I paid the price," she grit bitterly, holding up her left hand, "I nearly lost my hand when _father_ slammed the metal gate on my fingers for seeing me _help_ an elderly man, claiming that I was a whore like my mother. I almost _lost_ Allie when I came back to pack and he _shoved_ me down the stairs!" Angry tears glittered in her eyes, bitter memories of her childhood making her fingers itch, "When the doctor told me that I almost had a miscarriage, I vowed, never _ever_ to let that first-rank bastard trample over me again. _Never_. I got my last black belt, if he thinks he's going to be able to stomp into New York and beat the shit out of me and Allie, he's got another thing coming."

"Don can protect you." Elena didn't miss the implication. Her lips curved into a hard smirk and a huff of breath escaped her nose, "He couldn't then, and he certainly won't now." Giovanni shook his head, "No, dear child, he couldn't because you didn't want him getting hurt, he _can't_ because he doesn't know the truth. It's not that he won't. Because you care about others more than you care about yourself. The mayor's daughter threatened to put your father and I out of work if you told Don of Allie. Isn't that right?" It was a rhetorical question.

Elena stilled immediately, "I couldn't care less about him, but I knew how much you loved your job, I couldn't do that to you. You were the only one who cared and always will be the only one who cares about me. You loved me unconditionally, and you still do, how could I repay you with selfishness." There was no mistaking the tears falling from her long lashes and dropping onto the back of her hands. Her grandfather's large, sun-weathered, work-roughened hand covered hers as he slowly spun her to face him. Her stormy sea-green met his soft dark blue as he gently wiped away her tears as he'd done so often when she was young.

"You silly girl, if I knew that my job cost you your happiness I would have quit and stormed the mayor's office to bash him on the head with one of your Nonna's skillets for raising such a selfish brat." Elena choked out a laugh. Her late grandmother's skillets were the equivalent of an AK-47. Giovanni became serious again, "You sacrificed everything for us, and for Don. You disappeared from his life because you didn't care how much it hurt you as long as he was happy, as long as I was happy."

"And it was worth it. You and Allie are all I could ever want and more, I don't need anything else. We're happy the way we are."

"You are not. You haven't been genuinely happy since the day of Allie's birth. Don't shake your head, I know you. Did you think I had forgotten how Don was? Allie takes after her father, the good and the bad, she reminds you of him, and now because of me, you came back here, leaving the safety of Las Vegas." There was plenty irony in that; safety and Vegas just don't go together in the same sentence. Her grandpa continued, "Even after so many years you still ran into him, and now you even work with him. There are some people you just can't hide from no matter how hard you try, that is fate."

"Yeah, and fate also decreed that I have coldhearted, hateful parents and a horrendous family. You and Allie are the only people fate has given me to balance the odds. I'm content."

"But I am not. Watching you breaks my heart because I know I'm not seeing my Elli, that you're just a shadow whose had the life sucked out of her."

"You said I wasn't selfish, but you were wrong, Papi, because I am. I chose not to tell Don anything because I knew he would hate me when I did. I chose not to tie him down because I would have been miserable. I am selfish, don't you see." Elena's tears slipped down her cheeks as she closed her eyes. Giovanni's eyes became misty, "If you are selfish then we as your family are infinitely so, even with the way your father treated you, you still refused to let the family name fall to disgrace. I am a selfish old man, no matter how ashamed I was of my son I could not bring myself to do the right thing, to ruin the family name."

"It wasn't your fault, Papi. Just as I know it wasn't mine. All the times I lay there in my blood, it was you who bandaged and cared for me; all those emergency visits for fractures, you paid for. _Mother_ did what she did best, hiding from her dear husband, ignoring the cries of her youngest daughter," Elena bit out scornfully, "Yes, time can heal a lot of scars, but there are some scars, so deep, that it would take more than a lifetime to eradicate. I will admit, that even though father hurt me deeply, Don hurt me more than father could ever hope for."

Giovanni understood. The little boy he'd taught at his knee had been the only one to ever breach Elli's wall of protection. He'd hoped that Don would be the one to salvage the remains of his granddaughter's broken heart and soul. He still hoped so, only now he hoped, too, that Don would be able to work a miracle and fix his gigantic mistake before it was too late.

And that when the time came, Elli would forgive him.


	6. Nagging Conscience

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI: NY, though I wish I did, I simply own the plot and my characters

Nagging Conscience

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI: NY, though I wish I did, I simply own the plot and my characters.

Author's Note: Ha, I win! I _love_ this story; I hope you guys have enjoyed it as well. Read & review!

* * *

Don was blowing steam from his ears, trying to end the continuous argument that began a few weeks ago when Samantha got tied up in one of his cases. He didn't want his baby sister going back to her old ways. She had never been like that when she was a little girl. When they were both younger, Samantha used to tag along when Elli was around, she used to like following her big brother. Then something changed when Elli left town and he went off to the police academy. She started getting involved with shady people and doing things that pissed off their father to the max.

"You're not Dad! Stop telling me what to do!"

"I'm your brother, I'm just supposed to watch you screw up your life?!"

You're one to talk, if anybody screwed up their life it would be you! You dumped Elena for some bimbo! I don't think anybody could screw up more than that!"

"So you flush your future down the toilet because of that?!"

"When you were with her you used to care about me! She was the only person I could talk to because Dad was so stubborn and Mom was always busy with other things!"

"You could have called me!"

"I did, but you were always too busy with your little girlfriends!"

"Samantha Flack, what I do is none of your business!"

"Newsflash Don, what I do is none of your business either!" The door slammed behind her as Sam took the steps down two at a time. Her brother was such an idiot. If he hadn't messed up so badly, Elena would be her sister-in-law by now and she'd have a dozen nieces and nephews.

* * *

Elena drove down to Allie's school a bit later than usual, a last-minute autopsy had taken her longer than she expected and now she got there just as the bell rang. Breathing a sigh of relief, she got out of her warming car and waited for her daughter. She felt eyes burning a hole into the back of her head and twisted around to meet the gaze of a girl she hadn't seen in ages.

"Elena?"

"Sam?" Samantha Flack laughed delightedly as she hurled herself at Elena. Elena barely caught the young woman when she'd come barreling towards her. She never expected to see Sam again, nor such an enthusiastic greeting. But even after so many years, she could tell that Sam was upset. Soothing her hair as she would an agitated child she waited for Sam to calm down while she kept an eye out for her daughter in the crowd of children scrambling out of the building.

Sam tightened her arms around Elena for another second before she pulled away. She couldn't believe it, she didn't think she'd ever see the older woman again after Elena moved away. Elena brushed back some bangs that were in her eyes just like she used to, "Another fight with Don?" Despite being so pissed off, Sam laughed; only Elena had ever been able to tell when she'd been upset, she could fake her smiles and her mother would pass her off as perfectly fine.

"Yeah, but he doesn't matter now. Where have you been? I've missed you."

"I was in Vegas. I missed you too, Sam."

"Mommy, who is she?" Sam frowned as she looked away from Elena to the little girl tugging on Elena's coat. Elena bent down to her, "Allie, this is Aunt Samantha, say hi."

"Hi," the little girl obeyed, slipping her hand into her mother's. Sam couldn't hide her shock, and as Elena met her questioning stare, the reluctance around Elena's mouth was all Sam needed to confirm her guess.

She _did_ have a niece.

* * *

Elena and Samantha settled at a bench, watching Elena run onto the playground.

"What's her name, her full name?"

"Alexandra Grace Flack." Elena didn't bother lying, as her grandfather was so oft to point out, she needed a lesson on lying 101, in other words, she failed.

"Does Don know?"

"No, and I'd rather he didn't."

"But…"

"I never bothered hiding her birth, if he cared enough to check, he would've easily found himself listed as father to Allie. Hey, if he paid attention he would've realized that this ring was the last gift he'd given me before things shot to hell." Elena interrupted bluntly, "As it is, he thinks I'm married and probably thinks I'm a slut for falling into another man's bed so soon after breaking up with him."

"He is the biggest idiot in the world. If he hadn't let you go you two would be happily married and Allie…"

"Allie doesn't know Don's her father. She met him a couple days ago. To her, he's Uncle Don. I don't have anything to do with him." At the distress on Sam's face, she added, "That isn't to say you're not welcome to visit us. You're her aunt, and though Don and I will never be together again, Allie is still his daughter and she likes him, she's also your niece."

"Don's still an idiot, I can't believe he'd choose those brainless, vain…"

"We're not going down that road again, Allie only met your brother's girlfriend once and she's been going on about how Don would be a good boyfriend for me and such, you, sweetheart, are not going to annoy me further by enumerating the faults of his ex-girlfriends nor his current one. Which by the way I do not fall under the category of either."

Sam ignored her and continued doing what Elena told her not to do.

Elena sighed, why did Allie _have_ to take after her father's side of the gene pool, because if this was an example of what she was going to be dealing with, she was in for a _long_ ride to a nice psychiatric ward.

* * *

Ignoring the bustle around the squad room, Don sat back down in his chair, irritated and grumpy from the lack of sleep and disturbing thoughts.

Don stared grimly at the autopsy photos of the last 4 murder cases, sorry that his involvement with these women had been their demise. He wasn't in charge of the case anymore, Detective Angell was in charge of the investigation now since Don was connected to the victims and the suspect specifically singled him out. He also felt a heart-stopping degree of fear looking at those pictures.

Because every time he looked at one of the victims, their faces would morph into Elli's. Her features frozen in death and vibrant emerald eyes closed in eternal sleep. That made his heart clench painfully, he knew he should feel guilty thinking only of Elli, that he should probably be more concerned about Devin, but he wasn't. Surveillance was put on Devin once Don explained to Mac the link between the 4 victims, the link that Elli had seen from the beginning. A strange spark of hope leapt to the surface, did that mean she still cared? That she was jealous? He mentally shook his head, he was deluding himself and he knew it. He was surprised she didn't hate him – actually, she probably did for all he knew.

She was too hard to read, easier before, but nearly impossible now. She'd treated him so indifferently, like another stranger on the street, was there really a difference? Elli had changed, he had changed, they both grew up, and he realized belatedly that he'd only hurt her back then because he had commitment issues, not her.

He cringed at the path of his thoughts and quickly shoved them to the back of his mind. He shouldn't be thinking about how nice the feel of her body against his at night would be, waking up to her peaceful, beautiful face in the morning, her lovely, shy smile and those lively sea-green eyes. He hadn't seen that sparkle in a long time, it was only a shimmer now, the barrier used to be reserved for people she didn't trust or know, it pained him to know that he was now one of those people.

_What have I done?_

He didn't need to be a genius for him to interpret his conscience's answer with a resounding clang to his heart that he'd screwed up royally. He sighed dejectedly and dropped his head onto his desk with a '_thump_'. He wanted to drown himself in his misery, but he knew it was useless; Elli was married and whomever she married was one lucky bastard, he had a beautiful woman to love him and an equally beautiful little girl.

* * *

He growled in frustration, he wanted to curse and rage. It was too close today, too close. He'd forgotten about surveillance when he tried to snatch Flack's whore today, until he noticed the cops closing in. He barely managed to slip away before the surveillance passed the redheaded harlot, tempting every male in the vicinity with an exaggerated swing of her hips and accentuated tits. He watched as she flirted shamelessly with the bartender when she and her brainless friends went out to party. He idly wondered if the surveillance would report this back to Flack.

Snapping photos of her in that skimpy dress that nearly exposed her ass and bared her back, he grinned ferociously as he once again unzipped his pants and brought himself to a climax behind the bushes, licking his lips in anticipation.


	7. Twist of Fate

Twist of Fate

Twist of Fate

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI, though I wish I did, alas, I'm fine that I own Allie, Elena, and the plot.

Author's Note: I think I'd be overjoyed if CBS actually made an episode out of this, but I know that's not realistic, so please read and review and I'll be just as happy.

* * *

Elena finally managed to turn the conversation to why Sam was so pissed off and learned about things that simply added to her guilt. If she'd been there for Sam, she wouldn't have gotten mixed up with the wrong people. Nevertheless, she and Don had been fighting over the same issue for the past few weeks and tonight, Elena's name had gotten dragged in. Sam had let this little tidbit slip unconsciously, which only made Elena feel worse.

Elena looked at her phone and though her phone still had one piece of battery left she needed to help Sam patch things up, "Hey Sam, can I borrow your phone for a sec, mine's almost out of battery." Sam handed it to her and turned back to Allie and, Elena suspected, promptly began to conspire against her. She knew she'd be giving them more ammo to use against her by doing this, but she felt bad enough about Sam, scrolled through Sam's call list and found Don's number easily. She took a deep breath and hit redial. Don answered on the second ring, "Flack."

"It's Elena, I ran into Sam, we're at the McDonald's two blocks over from the Lab."

"Where's Sam?"

"She's fine, she's inside with Allie, I borrowed her phone to call you."

"I'll be there in ten minutes." Elena hung up without another word, she hoped she was doing the right thing. She turned to go back inside when Devin's murderous glare brought her to a halt. Elena rolled her eyes; it was just her luck.

"You lying bitch!"

"Don…"

"You two-faced slut! How could you do this to me?!"

"Will you shove your jealousy back where it belongs for a minute and let me talk, Don's just coming to pick his sister up," Elena was coming so close to losing her patience with the other woman. It took a lot for Elena to lose her cool, but dang, Devin managing to do so in the span of a few days was a huge feat. Devin finally shut up and still had the guts to look haughty, as if she had every right to throw a temper tantrum and not have to apologize. Elena shook her head when Devin stalked back to her car of friends.

Good riddance.

Going back inside, she met Allie and Sam's identical scowling faces.

"She's a big fat meanie."

"That brainless, selfish b…" Sam didn't get to finish what Elena knew she was going to say before Elena covered her mouth quickly with a pointed look at Allie, a double entendre, a warning to Sam and also addressing her daughter, "Allie, meanie is not a word and that's rude to call her big and fat. Besides, did I teach you to insult your elders?" Allie was nothing if not perceptive, that, she inherited from both parents, and pursed her lips abashedly. Elena smiled lightly, handed Sam her phone, and led the two back to their table for their food.

* * *

Allie had been chewing on a fry when Don made his entrance. She squealed in sheer happiness and bowled towards him, greasy fingers and all. Elena got up, shaking her head exasperatedly, "Allie, you're getting Don all dirty." Sam watched the little family, regardless of what Elena said, that was what they were, and suddenly all her anger towards her brother disappeared.

Well, as long as he managed to fix things with Elena. She smiled as Don held Allie still while Elena cleaned her hands and Don's shirt before remembering herself and withdrawing quickly. Sam cringed, there was only so much she could do. She probably would have been peeved at anyone else who called Don to come get her, but Elena, she didn't mind so much, though she should have suspected something was up when Elena asked to borrow her phone.

"You still mad at me?"

"No, not really," Sam replied with a sly look at Elena, both chose to ignore the implication.

"Ready to go home then?"

"Yup," Sam answered without hesitation, surprising Don, this was the little sister he thought he'd lost. Never once in the last decade or so had Sam given in so easily. He shot Elena a look, she only shrugged. Well, he wasn't complaining. Allie was yanking lightly on his hair and blowing wet raspberries in his ear, deciding to see whether Don or her mom lasted longer. He dipped her and tickled her mercilessly, making her giggle and laugh and making the other matrons in the semi-quiet restaurant smile, murmuring comments like 'Such an adorable family' and 'That cutie pie is a great catch, not only is he a gorgeous husband, he's a loving father too.' Elena rolled her eyes at Sam at the latter comment when the younger woman shot her a suggestive smile.

"Give up?"

"No!" Don continued his playful torture until Allie choked out, "Okay, okay, you win."

What Elena always used to say.

"Mommy, can we take Uncle Don home with us?"

"Don needs to take Sam home, honey." Elena didn't need to put any extra emphasis on anything for her daughter to hear the warning to behave belying the benign statement. She quieted – for now, when Uncle Don and Aunt Samantha left, she'd give her mom an earful. She smiled angelically, a smile her mom saw right through, and so did Don for that matter.

"Allie, you behave for your mom, kiddo."

"Okay, Daddy." It'd come out so naturally that only Elena did a double take. Her daughter was giving her father a kiss on the cheek and hugging her aunt goodbye from Don's arms, but she definitely had not intended to do that. Thankfully, Don hadn't noticed, neither had Sam or Allie. Don set Allie down carefully and ruffled her hair affectionately.

* * *

He was spitting mad now. If he didn't want to get caught before tearing Don Flack's life into little shreds and cause him as much pain as he deserved, he'd be hopping up and down and charging into that restaurant with a bazooka. Antonio Rossi _never_ made such a big mistake. _Never_. How could he have missed the signs?! He could feel his anger simmering just below the top and jerked his cell phone out of his pocket, punching in the numbers violently.

"Change of plans, bring the van to the alley by the police station, we've got bigger fish to catch." A pause. "You'll get your fun, just not with that whore." He shoved the phone back into his pocket as he got up and stomped off to meet his cronies.

* * *

Elena couldn't explain why, since she and Allie had left the restaurant, she'd felt nothing but tense and anxious. She should have been annoyed with Allie's illogical arguments about why Don would make the perfect daddy, but she wasn't, she was only wary. Elena generally wasn't this paranoid, yet she'd felt someone tailing her the moment they stepped out of McDonald's. She knew it wouldn't be surveillance, nobody knew about her and Don's past, she certainly wouldn't say anything, nor would Don. This was the one night she regretted not having her car since it was in the shop. Instead, she tried to stay under the streetlights, or just somewhere bright period.

Allie picked up on her mother's worry after going on for 10 minutes without her mother saying a word, "Mommy, what's wrong?"

"Allie, sweetie, I need you to stay close to me, all right, if anything happens, just scream and run towards light, the streetlights or the shop lights. I'll leave my phone in my pocket, just grab it and dial 911, when the police show up, ask for Uncle Don, his last name is Flack, okay?" Allie nodded. Elena could tell she wanted to ask about Don, but she didn't have time to explain.

The bastard was after Allie, Elena could only hold them off for her daughter to get away.

When she absolutely had no other choice, Elena walked past an alley, moving Allie behind her as they came inevitably closer to that dark alleyway. Allie automatically screamed when three burly figures charged out at Elena. Elena's intensive training went into high gear. Allie backed into a wall to stay out of her mom's way and to make sure she wouldn't get dragged into a car like she always saw in the movies.

Elena smoothly flipped one man over her shoulder even though he was at least twice her size and dropped him in midair. She heard a satisfying crack even as the other two came at her with a metal pole and a wickedly sharp hunting knife. The rat with the pole swung at her at the same time the stupid worm stabbed at her, so she neatly sidestepped the knife and dodged the pole as she brought her palm in a down strike to the knife guy's pressure point on the side of his neck and tangled with the other in a deadly dance. The two other cronies staggered to their feet to try to overwhelm her. Allie saw two other figures appear in the alleyway behind her mom.

"Mommy!" Elena swung her attention to her daughter for a fraction of a second. That was what cost her. The three idiots she'd been originally fighting were in no condition to continue the battle, but the newly arrived retard had a gun and smashed the butt against her head as the leader grabbed a kicking and screaming Allie.

Elena flew into the wall and knew she'd have a nasty gash, but she couldn't care less. Through her blurred vision, a white van screeched to a stop by the sidewalk and the crook who'd clonked her on the head flung the door open and the leader hauled Allie in, the others clambering in after. Elena forced herself to her feet ran to the van, barely missing it.

"Allie!" She could hear the people rushing towards her and hear the sirens, but it was too late, too late.


	8. Karma

Karma

Disclaimer: I tried to buy CSI from CBS with my penny, but they refused, so, I only own the plot.

Author's Note: Yay, aren't I good, I've been updating regularly. Read and review please!

* * *

Despair and fear clenched her heart in a viselike grip that she actually wanted to cry. Elena was holding a white towel to her head above her right eye to stem the blood flow, sitting on the curb of the sidewalk surrounded by flashing lights, uniforms, and paramedics. She brushed off another paramedic distractedly, "I'm fine, I'm a doctor, I think I'd know when I'd need to go to the hospital." The uniforms were talking to the cowards who'd hidden in their homes when she and Allie had been attacked. Don showed up with Mac and the others, "Elli, what happened?"

"Allie, he took Allie!" Elena's free hand clenched and released her jeans as she tried to calm down, panicking wouldn't help Allie. She took a deep breath, "We left right after you did. The entire time, I felt like someone was watching us. My car's in the shop so we had to walk home. I told Allie if anything happened to scream and run with my cell phone then call the police and ask for you." She stopped when a wave of pain blossomed from her other injuries, then plunged on, "I knew we didn't have a choice but to walk past the alley, when we did, three men attacked us. I scratched one of them and another cracked his head on the ground by the dumpster when I threw him. There's a pole and knife over there, they weren't wearing gloves."

She shook her head to clear the fuzz, "Two other guys showed up and one of them had a gun, he hit me over the head and I slammed into the brick wall. Rossi grabbed Allie once I was down and a white van pulled up. I couldn't see the license too clearly, but I remember it had a few marks and dents along the side, I think it was stolen." Her head was throbbing and she knew she was losing more blood than she should. Don handed her a cup of water, "Here, drink this. Let me see how bad you're hurt."

"I'll be fine, just…" her breath caught as her ankle and right shoulder began to throb.

* * *

Don couldn't begin to describe the relief he felt when he found Elena sitting on the curb, nursing her wound. He'd also felt a keening sense of loss when Elli told him the asshole took Allie. Don wanted to bundle Elli up and take her to the hospital, but he knew she wouldn't leave yet. He covered Elli's shaking hand, "Jesus, you're freezing, Elli." Taking his coat off, he wrapped it around her quickly, "I'll be fine, I just want Allie back," she nearly sobbed. Don suppressed the urge to wrap his arms around her, "Can you stand?"

"I think so." Don gripped her left hand and right elbow and helped her to her feet when he saw her wince, "You twisted your ankle." She nodded, swallowing hard, "My left ankle, my right shoulder's kinda sore, but it'll be fine."

"You've got a nice bump on your head too," Danny pointed out. Don shifted his grip to her elbow so Elena could hold out her hand for Danny to collect the epithelial sample from her nails. She twisted her wrist slightly to make Danny's job easier and bit down hard on her lip, "We'll get that wrist fixed when Danny's done." If Danny found Don's protectiveness strange, he didn't say anything. Danny ended up collecting a small sample of Elena's DNA to corroborate her story. She understood that it wasn't anything against her, they simply had to single out her DNA to match the other samples collected. Elli signed the form the paramedics had handed her, stating that she hadn't wanted any medical attention, letting Don help her into his car. She still held the cloth to her gash, silently staring out the window.

* * *

Don could see the emptiness in her eyes and knew she was in shock. He wished there was something he could do to help, but short of finding Allie, there wasn't really anything he could do about that; he wasn't in charge of the case. He drove them back to the precinct and empty squad room, everyone had cleared out hours earlier to go home. Don's arms held Elena steady, guiding her to his desk, she hobbled to sit down in his chair. He crouched in front of her, "You gonna be ok?" Her eyes moved blearily before coming to rest on his face, "I don't know."

"Elli, look at me, it's gonna be okay." He tucked a piece of hair behind her ear as one hand cradled her face and the other rested on the armrest to keep the chair in place. He watched her wall crumple as the tears slipped in gradually increasing succession. This time, he did pull her into his arms. Her hands gripped the loose folds of his shirt around his stomach while she tried to control her tears. She couldn't though, not when his warmth and strength were surrounding her, protecting her, comforting her. She cried quietly, "I just want my baby back…" Don gently rubbed between her shoulder blades to soothe her. Both failed to notice Devin glowering from the doorway to the squad room. They heard some noise and Elena pulled away, brushing away the tears with the back of her hand. Don went off to get the wrapping bandage. Stella waddled in, taking one look at Elena's red, puffy eyes and her disheveled appearance and handed her a Motrin pill, "Thanks."

"You pretentious bitch! I can't believe you would stoop so low! You stage your daughter's kidnap to get closer to Don so you can have an excuse to tell him that's his daughter! You told me you wouldn't! I can't believe I was so dumb!"

"What?" Don's quiet voice cut through the tension in the room like a knife. Elena blanched, Devin still looked furious.

"This lying whore claims that little girl is your daughter but she probably slept around and got knocked up," Devin sneered, making Stella curl her lip in disgust and put a comforting hand on Elena's shoulder, "Are you blind, that girl is Don and Elena's carbon copy."

Elena noticed the sheet of paper in Don's hand. She took it from him with her sleeve, staring in horror at the picture of Allie, gagged and bound to a chair, and the note beneath it:_ Hello, Detective Flack, I've got to hand it to you, how _did_ you manage to fuck that feisty bitch? Your daughter is such a darling. See you soon_. Elena couldn't breath, "No, no, no…" Stella took out an evidence bag from her crime scene case and bagged the note. Flack crumpled the tissue in his fist.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You can't actually believe her!"

"Elena, answer me," Don persisted, ignoring Devin completely. Elena gave an odd little laugh that bordered on hysterical, "Tell you what? That I found out I was pregnant the day you decided we should break up. Or maybe that your innocent little girlfriend threatened to fire my grandfather and make sure to run him out of town if I told you because her father was the mayor. You didn't honestly believe I was so naïve that I wouldn't know when you were with someone else. You came home with perfume on your shirts and she even started leaving little notes for me to find after a while. You're a detective, I think you know, that as they say, the evidence was not in your favor. I'm not stupid either, if I had told you I was pregnant, you would have married me like any self-respecting Italian and then turned around to go back to her or whoever it was you were with." Stella and Devin had been shocked into silence by the scathing words and heavy sarcasm.

"Don…" Stella started heatedly.

"It doesn't matter anymore, I just want my baby back," Elena sighed shakily, resignedly.

"Let me see if that head wound is still bleeding," Stella ordered briskly after a brief silence. Elena passively cooperated and allowed Stella to tape a piece of gauze over her scrape.

Don couldn't say anything to refute what Elena said, because it was true. He had gone to Bella to vent about Elena, but he hadn't known she'd slipped notes in his pockets while giving him hugs. They hadn't actually started dating until after he and Elena had broken up and he'd joined the police force. He palmed his forehead, she was right, with evidence like that, he wouldn't have blamed her if she'd dumped him in public. His other girlfriends wouldn't have hesitated to do that if they even _suspected_ he was in the presence of another woman.

"You and Devin should head home," Elena spoke quietly, calmly, "there's nothing we can do except wait."

"You don't hate me?"

She shook her head sadly, giving Don some hope until Elena said, "I can't hate a stranger. You're Allie's father, you have every right to be included in this, that's all."

Stella had to admire Elena's self-control, if she hadn't been looking so hard, she wouldn't have seen that little bit of tension around her mouth or that Elena's grip had tightened around her cup. She pushed herself out of the chair and looked at Stella, "We should get back to the Lab." The Grecian nodded. Elena limped out with Stella, leaving Don and Devin.

Then his temper flared.

"You knew?!" If Devin was smart, which she wasn't, she would have known that Don only used that lethally quiet tone when he was mad as hell.

"Yeah I knew, I knew the first time I saw you with that brat at the store. I called little miss innocent out the next day. She promised," Devin scowled like a petulant child.

"You called Elli and _made_ her promise not to tell me?!" This time, there was no mistaking the fury. Devin glared at him defiantly, "Don't _yell_ at me or you're sleeping alone tonight."

"It's over."

"_What!_" Devin's jaw dropped incredulously, as if she couldn't believe that Don would have the guts to break up with her.

"You heard me. Go home, if you come anywhere _near_ Elli, I'll have my colleagues pick you up on harassment charges and file a restraining order." Without a backward glance, he spun around and strode after Elena and Stella into the Lab.

* * *

"Why didn't I use my head before I started dating that selfish…" Don trailed off, biting off the nasty word he wanted to say.

"You did, you just used the wrong one."


	9. Lost and Found

Lost and Found

Disclaimer: I don't own anyone or anything except the plot, Elena, Allie, and Giovanni.

Author's Note: Read and review please!!!

* * *

Don leaned against the doorjamb tiredly, numb from the discovery that Allie was his daughter. Elena was leaning her elbows on her knees, rubbing her eyes and squinting against the bright lights. One of her infamous headaches, they'd been rare and far between when they were together, he wasn't sure about now, but if her bloodshot eyes were anything to go by, she was in a lot of pain. He debated internally.

"Don't think about it, just do it," Sheldon advised, coming to stand next to Don.

"It's hard," Don replied, "She's not the girl I used to know, I'm not even sure she'll let me help." Danny joined them and clapped Don on the shoulder, "That's why you don't think about it, more you think about it you're gonna chicken out." Don squared his shoulders and went over to Elena, Danny and Sheldon left to give them some privacy. Don hesitantly wrapped his hand around the base of her neck, her warm hand gently kneading the tension out of Elena. She sighed despairingly, unwillingly relaxing into Don's touch. He wanted her trust again, wanted her to trust him as she did before, no holds barred. Turbulent seas looked at him through her lashes, letting him know at once just how distressed she was that she wasn't even bothering to hide her emotions anymore. She nearly jumped out of her skin when her phone rang from her coat pocket.

Elena held the phone as if it were a snake about to strike. Hands shaking she pressed the accept button and held the receiver to her ear, "Hello?"

"_Is this Ms. Marino speaking?"_

"This is she."

"_I'm calling from the General Hospital, we regret to inform you that your grandfather was admitted into the ICU an hour ago due to a stroke."_ Elena numbly thanked the woman.

"Elli, what's wrong?"

"Papi…" She trailed off. Don didn't need her to finish her sentence, "Which hospital?"

"General," she replied tonelessly. She worried him, if anything, he preferred her cold control to this mindless response. Silence thick between them, the couple left the Lab and slid into his car.

* * *

Machines beeped and whirred, accompanied by the smell of rubbing alcohol and Irish brand soap. The wash of fluorescent light called a sense of foreboding to the mind, especially when Elena watched her beloved grandfather through the glass, pale and weak with IV lines and wires protruding from his obscenely fragile body. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms to try to dispel the feeling of helplessness and chill. She'd snapped out of her stupor during the car trip and decided that she needed all her wits and calm if she wanted to get Allie back and nurse her grandfather back to health. A wave of anger whipped through her: when she got her hands on Rossi, he was going to be as dead as the bodies she autopsied in the morgue.

* * *

Don took one look at the sharp emerald shards prominent in those swirling, dark pools and _almost_ felt bad for Rossi. He'd rarely been on the receiving end of Elli's temper, so rarely that he sometimes questioned how much it took to spark a bit of impatience, but the times she had been pushed over the edge, she hadn't been very happy with him and he'd spent lonely nights on the couch when he'd been in the doghouse. Somehow, he had a feeling that whatever she had in store for Rossi, wasn't going to be pretty.

"Elli, eat." He wasn't _suggesting_ that she eat the Chinese takeout he'd run out to get her, he was _telling_ her to. She obeyed without comment because she knew she couldn't afford to have her body conk out on her when she needed to stay healthy. She settled on the edge of her chair anxiously, agitatedly.

* * *

Hours later, afternoon broke through the frosted corridor windows and Elena tiredly pinched the bridge of her nose, fully aware that she most likely looked like a panda at the moment, but she most certainly did not feel like one. A cup appeared in front of her eyes. She looked up at Don as she took the cup of coffee gratefully, her voice husky from exhaustion, "Thanks."

"How's he doin'?"

"The doctor said his condition's stable and when he wakes up, they'll move Papi out of the ICU." He could see the tension in her slender frame, "You need to rest now, you won't be any good to anyone if you fall, 'specially not Allie."

"Easier said than done," she retorted, "It's easy to give advice but harder to take it yourself, isn't it? You've probably had about the same amount of sleep in the last 56 hours as I have." She rubbed the back of her neck, bending forward to lean on her knees. Don started to say something when the pager clipped to his belt buzzed. Elli heard the vibration and quickly looked up. Their eyes met and, wordlessly, both found the closest phone and called Stella.

"Stel?"

"_We didn't get anything off the fax, but he did call, you and Elena might want to hear this."_

"We'll be back in an hour."

* * *

Elena nodded at Lindsay once, Lindsay, lips thinned, pressed the play button. Rossi's voice rolled out, slick as oil. Elena, sick to her stomach, worried about her daughter's safety. Her heart stopped when she heard her daughter's frightened little voice, _"Mommy, I don't like him, he looks like that salamander in Monsters Inc., he said Uncle Don is my daddy, is he lying, Mommy…"_ Elli's voice cut off on a cry and Rossi's voice returned, _"Well, well, well, little miss innocent kept a big secret from her boyfriend. Doesn't that make you furious Flack; you missed all your adorable little girl's firsts. So sad. So who cheated on who, did you knock her up and toss her away, or did she…"_

Danny abruptly stopped the file. Nobody in the room said a word, all eyes were on Elena and Don. Elena's terror was palpable, and the women stopped their counterpart with a look, telling them to ask questions later.

Her hands shook violently even after she clenched them so tightly that her knuckles turned white. She couldn't speak, couldn't do anything, simply sat there with the wheels and worries turning in her head. Suddenly alert, her eyes moved about as she searched deeper in her memory, "Danny, could you play the file again?" Danny complied.

"Do you hear that, there's a clock chime and sirens, fire truck sirens." Understanding dawned and everyone set to work quickly, adrenaline and excitement glowing on their faces. They pulled up the fire department records and singled out the ones that corresponded with the time of the message then matched those locations until they found one within a 100-foot radius of a clock tower. When they pulled up the area, both Elena's and Don's blood ran cold:

"That's Rossi's ex-wife's ancestral home."

* * *

The Homicide Unit, uniforms, and CSIs spread across the lawn in the dark, surrounding the premises as the heavier armed forces knocked down the front door and stormed the structure, blinding all the perpetrators with smoke bombs and flashlights. Even as Don and Elena refused to stay on the sidelines, they could hear Stella protesting futilely against Mac's adamant order for her to stay, but they knew they couldn't do anything or the case could be compromised on technicality, it wasn't likely, but they weren't taking the chance that Rossi would appeal based on that argument. Elena wasn't wearing a bulletproof vest, so Don stayed in front of her. Gunshots were fired and shouts filled the big space with the smoke, then Elena heard Allie's voice.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Don looked over his shoulder at Elli and nodded in the direction of the rooms down the hall. She, Don, and a couple uniforms searched through each room until they came to the last one. The door was slightly ajar and Don nudged it open further, cautiously. Rossi's chilling voice met them halfway, "Come in, come in, my dears. Join the party, we're having a blast!" The uniforms stayed out of sight while Don and Elena went in. A manic glint in his eyes, Rossi grinned sickly, his gun pointed at Allie.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Keeping a worried eye on Allie, Don and Elena glared suspiciously at Rossi, "What are you playing at? You can't get out now, not with the entire place surrounded."

"That's the fun part. I like playing this game," Rossi declared lightly, playfully. Elena saw Mac climb in the window behind Rossi and knew she had to distract him.

"Why'd you kill them?"

"They were all whores, flaunting themselves like meat in a butcher shop. More importantly, their deaths would bring Donny pain."

"You were wrong, it didn't hurt. Have fun in Rikers, asshole." Playfulness gone, Rossi snarled and swung the gun to Don, "Drop the gun." The muzzle of Mac's 9mm pressed gently into the back of Rossi's head, "Drop the gun." Rossi didn't move. Don lashed out and kicked the gun out of Rossi's hand before he had a chance to tighten his finger on the trigger all the way. Mac arrested him and before the uniforms led Rossi out, Don said in his ear, "Their deaths didn't cause me pain, but if you had gone after Elli, I probably would have killed you first then joined her." Rossi lunged at Don only to be thrown into the backseat of the patrol car.

"Guess you lose."


	10. Confrontations

Confrontations

Disclaimer: I own nothing of CSI: NY, I only own the plot, Elena, and Alexandra Grace.

Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Read and review!

* * *

Elena held her daughter as if she would never let go again, which was tempting if not for her daughter squirming to get down. She slowly let go of Allie and followed her daughter's gaze: Don stood there, frozen with indecision, not knowing if he was welcome to the reunion. Gun holstered and grimacing with relief and uncertainty, he thanked the gods for his daughter's safety.

The fear on Allie's face, which had still been there when she pulled away, dissolved into a delighted smile at Don, "Daddy?" He took a step forward, then hesitated as he shot a look towards Elena, she nodded lightly as she dropped her hand from Allie's back and she threw herself at him. Don swung the little girl into his arms easily, hugging her tightly and burying his face in the juncture between her neck and shoulder to reassure himself that his daughter was safe now.

* * *

Allie had her arms wrapped securely around Don's neck, fearing to let go. She found her daddy, but her mommy still looked upset, "Mommy, why are you so sad?"

Elena choked back her tears as she managed a trembling smile, "I'm not sad, I'm just not feeling very well." Allie reached out one hand to her mother, and gossips be damned, she needed her daughter's comfort right now.

* * *

Don held both his girls in his arms, not caring if others saw right now, his Elli was shaking. He stroked her head gently, knowing that he'd never get the chance to again once she had her wits back about her.

* * *

Stella waddled in to this scene and backed out quietly before colliding with someone. When she stumbled and her husband's muscles bunched around her as he caught her, she nearly turned around to scold him for scaring her. His stormy blue eyes twinkled apologetically as he guided his pregnant wife back outside.

"It's about time they stopped being dense."

"Stella, I thought I told you to wait out here."

"And miss that Kodak moment, nuh-uh bud." Mac gave her a stern look, which she returned with one of her own of feigned innocence. She smiled mischievously, "You can't say you didn't have ulterior motives for telling the others not to touch the primary crime scene until Don and Elena cleared out with Allie." His lips twitched, "Guilty."

* * *

Back at the lab a few hours later, Don, Mac, Danny, and Sheldon were in the interrogation rooms with the suspects while Stella and Lindsay stayed with Elena and Allie in the break room. Stella was pacing and cursing under her breath, impatient to hear what was going on. Lindsay and Elena looked on in tired amusement. Allie was in Elena's lap while Elena rocked her gently, "Sweetie, why don't you take a nap." Allie didn't need to be told twice, she dozed lightly, waking at every little sound and movement Elena made. Well, there went taking her home. Elena didn't think anybody would believe her if she told them Allie wasn't Don's daughter.

They were both so stubborn.

"Stella, sit down, you're going to wear a hole in the floor," Lindsay laughed. Stella glared at her, peeved, but sat down nonetheless. The minute she sat down, Mac and Sheldon walked in. She shot up onto her feet, "Did they confess? What did they say? Are they going to jail?" Mac helped Stella sit down and calmly answered, "Slow down, yes they confessed to aiding and abetting kidnapping, the rest is up to the jury now."

"Not if we have anything to say about it," Sheldon said, and with a pointed look at Elena, "especially Don. I've never seen him so scared before."

"I haven't been, even staring down the barrel of an AK-47." Allie's eyes, identical to her father's, flew open at the sound of dad's voice and hopped off Elena's lap to make a straight beeline for Don. Elena's lips twisted wryly, "Daddy's little girl." Yet, there was nothing bitter or remotely scornful in her tone, only relief and slight humor.

"Why haven't you gone home yet?" Don asked Elena since she looked dead on her feet.

"Can you come home with us, Daddy, please?" Allie pleaded. Don picked her up, "I don't know, kiddo, what did mom say?" Allie simply looked at her mother with big, blue-gray, puppy eyes. Elena sighed, "I hate it when you two give me those eyes. All right, daddy can come home with us, but where is he going to sleep? Your bed's not big enough for both of you."

"But your bed's big enough, Mommy, he can sleep with you," Allie answered innocently. Elena's ears flamed, the others, bar Don, snickered loudly, "All right, how about we figure it out when we get home," Elena said as she grabbed her purse. The three headed out for the night.

"Man, I hope Don gets lucky."

* * *

The three opted to take Don's car, parking a ways off and walking the rest of the way home, Allie as happy as ever that she'd found her daddy and he and her mommy were together again. Elena didn't have the heart to put a damper on her mood and so she went along with it. Allie and Don were laughing about something until someone stepped out of the shadows.

"Elli, stay behind me," Don warned. Allie clung to her parents. Elena relaxed fractionally when light spilled onto the sidewalk to illuminate a beautiful redhead, her features frozen into something not so pretty. A jealous woman she could deal. Don still stayed between Devin and Elena, suspicion and mistrust hardening his eyes to ice-blue. Elena hesitantly reached a hand to his shoulder. His gaze softened when he turned back to look at her. She shook her head lightly, tiredly. He gave in and reached behind him to grasp Allie's hand.

"Daddy, is the bad woman going to yell at Mommy again?" Allie shifted from Devin to her father and back. It was a good thing she missed the episode at the precinct.

"No she definitely isn't," Don replied firmly. She'd lied to him and tried to keep him from getting to know his daughter. Tried to keep him from even knowing he had a daughter. The fact that she'd called Elena out to coerce her was what pissed him off the most.

"I just came to talk to Elena."

"I'd rather you didn't," Don retorted.

"Don, let's go inside to talk, it's kinda cold out here." Don took one of Elli's hands in his, as a protective gesture, and took Allie's in his free hand as they headed up to Elena's apartment.

* * *

Once inside, and with Don out of earshot, Devin cut straight to the point, "You promised."

"I wasn't the one who told him about Allie, you did. Even if you hadn't, he would have found out when the kidnappers sent _him_ the ransom note," Elli told her wearily, too tired to argue.

"That's not what I meant, you promised to stay away from him, but now you're trying to steal him away from me! Don's mine!" Devin raged, barely keeping her voice down.

"I'm nobody's boy toy, 'specially not yours," Don bit out, eyes brimming with hurt pinned Elena guiltily, "You should go now." Devin pouted and looked as if she were going to blow a fuse, Elli said nothing and simply disappeared into the bathroom.

* * *

Elena splashed her face with cold water, trying to soothe her frazzled nerves and red-rimmed eyes from the worried tears she'd shed in the long hours that Allie had been gone. Taking a deep shuddering breath, she left the bathroom, but she couldn't help checking on her daughter to reassure herself that her daughter was safe and sound, sleeping in her own bed. She went to the kitchen to get a cup of tea for herself and a cup of coffee for Don. Carrying both mugs, she headed for the living room.

She froze in the doorway.

There he was, sprawled on the couch, his shirt unbuttoned and tank top riding up to expose his stomach as he shifted in his sleep, one arm curled under his head and the other just above his upper thigh. She'd forgotten how delectable he looked with his hair mussed, clothes all rumpled, his long lashes resting lightly against his cheeks, lips lightly curved – okay that was a lie but being this close to him reminded her of just how much she'd missed him.

He hadn't changed that much, his biceps and broad chest were more muscled and his rock-hard abs were tempting her to touch him, but she wouldn't give in, getting involved with him again would be a _big_ mistake. On that thought, being caught staring at him would be just as big of a mistake. Forcing herself to spin around and return to the kitchen, she determinedly put him out of her mind – or tried to anyway.

* * *

Don lay still, feeling her gaze on him. He was awake the instant he sensed her coming into the living room, shifting slightly to hide his erection. Grinning to himself when she hesitated, he waited, instead he heard her light footsteps retreat. He felt disappointment, but at the same time, he was elated.

He'd just found his way back into Elli's life.

When he succeeded, he'd work on his way to her heart.

Don knew he should feel bad about plotting to use their daughter and her response to him against her, but in the grand scheme of things, it was either be honorable and risk losing her, or be underhanded and risk her wrath. The former was completely unacceptable to him. His exhausted mind dragged him back into slumber, but just before he slipped back into that blissful abyss of darkness, he felt a hand brush back a piece of hair and saw her back to him, bent over and adjusting a blanket around his legs.


	11. Tête à tête

Tête-à-tête

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI: NY, if I did, Don would NOT be with Angell.

Author's Note: I'm kind of depressed, kindly press the button down there, thanks.

* * *

Elena woke up to the slivers of dawn the next day, tired and restless. She scooted out of her bed and headed for Allie's room. The door was open.

Her bed was empty.

Elena felt instant terror flood her veins. She turned away from the doorway, panicking, and ran into the living room, Don's name lodged in her throat with the fear crawling up from the pit of her stomach. She froze when she got to the living room.

Don had Allie cuddled to his chest, dried tear streaks on her cheeks. Elena swallowed her scream and breathed a shaky sigh of relief. Don's eyes slowly fluttered open. He pushed himself up slightly on his elbow, "Mmm…" He caught sight of Elena blearily and understood her pale skin and dilated eyes, "Allie had a nightmare, she came to me in the middle of the night," he rasped, his voice hoarse from sleep and low from the effort not to wake their daughter. She nodded as she went to kneel by the couch, her heart breaking.

"I thought she… I thought she was gone again." She brushed the pad of her thumb across her daughter's cheeks, to reassure herself that her daughter was safe. She looked up at him and had a déjà vu. His five o'clock shadow and sleepy silver-blue eyes bringing back painful memories for her. She forced a smile, "I was going to go see Papi today, do you wanna spend the day with Allie?" Today was his day off and she knew he'd be thrilled. He shook his head, "We'll go with you, I'm sure Allie would want to see Gramps." She nodded, though she hadn't forgotten that they'd grown up together and Papi had insisted Don call him Gramps. She knew her grandfather would like to see Don again, he was technically his grandson in everything but blood.

"M'kay, we'll leave at noon."

* * *

Allie fell asleep on the hour-long journey to the hospital, leaving Don and Elena in an awkward silence. She stared out the window, pretending to watch the passing scenery, though it was nothing more than a field of weeds. Out of the corner of his eye, Don could tell she was acting interested in the inane pastime to avoid talking to him; she wasn't getting off that easy.

"What does he think about all this?"

"Hmm? What he?" Elena asked, momentarily forgetting that she was _supposed_ to be married. She quickly recovered and her ears turned red, "Oh, Papi doesn't know Allie was kidnapped." Knowing full well that she was feigning ignorance he pressed again, "I thought you said you were married." Her patience snapped out of irritation (from lack of sleep) and rare temper (from him goading her), "If I recall correctly I said nothing of that sort to you, you simply _assumed_ that I was married and jumped to the conclusion that Allie was the product of that marriage."

"So you admit you're not married then." The barest hint of light pink crept into her ivory cheeks, "I never said _that_ either."

"But you're not denying I'm right."

"What do you care, it's not like it's any of your business anyway." Don said nothing to that, he was slightly amused by the bit of venom seeping into her tone, it was the first time in a long time since he'd seen a display of temper from her and he knew now that he missed it more than he realized. He wasn't aware his amusement was showing on his face until she said, "Stop smirking, you jerk." He smiled instead.

"Urgh, you insufferable pighead, _what_ is so amusing?!"

"You losin' your temper. You're easier to piss off now, you know that?" She shut down, her lips clamped together. He was right, what was going on, she never lost her temper, _ever_, until she was pushed to the extreme, yet he was getting under her skin with ease.

* * *

Elena couldn't wait for the agonizing ride to be over and nearly jumped out of the car once Don pulled into the parking lot. Before she could wake Allie, Don opened the backseat door and slid his strong arms under Allie's small form, carrying her the entire way to the Giovanni's room. Elena ignored the way the nurses looked at Don, as if they wanted to jump his bones regardless of the little girl in his arms, her head on his shoulder.

Don recognized that steely look in her eyes, the determined line of her lips, and had to bite back a smile. He knew she was trying hard to pretend she wasn't jealous, to act like she didn't care. Elli saw him hold Allie closer, his big hands curving around her side to keep her warm and in a protective gesture, that of a loving father. Stella was right; Don was a natural.

They found the Marino patriarch propped up on his pillow, looking much better with some color back in his cheeks. He looked up to see Elena pass the nurse and grinned cheekily when he saw Don right behind her, carrying his sleeping great-granddaughter. His granddaughter narrowed her eyes in warning and he smiled when he saw the sparks lurking in the depths of her forest green pools. Elena scowled at her grandfather; this was such a conspiracy.

"Didn't I tell you this would happen, but did you listen to me, no. Papi –"

"Elena, my beauty, my very sweet granddaughter, my lovely rose, you needn't worry, I'm all right now aren't I? Don't frown my dear, it makes you look so uninviting." She raised an eyebrow at Papi, "Interesting word choice, am I supposed to laugh and dance seeing you in a hospital bed?" She knew perfectly well what he meant and blast him for trying to embarrass her.

"Stop trying to sweet-talk me, you know it doesn't work."

"I think it does, it just depends on who's doing it." All humor fled from her face, "Mm-hmm, no one but you and Allie, Papi, you and her." Right on cue, Allie lifted her head sleepily, "Daddy, where are we?"

"We're at the hospital, kiddo, Grampa's over there," Don said as he gently set her on her feet. She brightened at the sight of her great-grandfather grinning at her then frowned a bit at the tubes and the flimsy hospital gown, "Why do you have so many tubes, Nonno?"

"I'm like a toilet, they need to flush out all the nasty stuff."

"Gross, Papi, I haven't eaten yet and I think I just lost my appetite."

"Gotta say, Gramps, you haven't lost your touch after all these years."

"Of course I haven't, but it seems you have."

"With what?" Don asked, thoroughly confused.

"My granddaughter obviously."

"Papi, do you mind, your great-granddaughter is sitting in your lap and the nurses eavesdropping outside who have their eyes set on Don will come after me and kill me for simply working with him." Don wanted to snarl, she'd so easily and efficiently turned their relationship into nothing more than work again, it irritated him.

They spent a couple more hours laughing and eating, the conversations between Don and Elena few and impersonal. He got her to talk more when he asked about Allie.

* * *

When they returned to work, everyone at the Lab whispered about Elena and Don. Elena was doing her best to ignore all their malicious comments and rumors the infatuated women had spread, preferring to keep to the Morgue unless Stella or Lindsay popped in to drag her out. She generally avoided Don unless Allie was present, preferring to not add more food for the gossipmongers. Lindsay was beginning to show and there was a certain glow about her, though she and Danny still hadn't sorted things out. She, Don, and Allie had fallen into a routine, Don would stay for dinner then if Allie wanted to go home with him, she could and Don would take her to school and Elena would pick her up. She knew that if Allie could have her say, she and Don would be living together by now, so she put her foot down about no sleeping on the couch for either of them, which led to Stella and Lindsay giving her suggestive looks.

Tonight was a little different, Don was a no show because he said he had something to do. He told Allie that he'd stop by later tonight since it was a Friday and she could stay up.

"Mommy, can we go get some movies?"

"Why? Did you have some movies in mind?"

"Daddy said that Superman and Batman were the best movies ever!" Elena shook her head in exasperation, "Okay, put on your coat and we'll swing by Aunt Sam's to see if she wants to come over.

"Yay!" Allie scrambled off the couch and ran to the foyer until she realized she was too small to get her coat. Elena found her jumping and yanking on her coat, a frustrated frown identical to Don's imbedded between her brows. She chuckled before she helped Allie into her jacket and put on her shoes. Then she, too, bundled up and they burrowed into her warm, running car.

* * *

When they got to Sam's apartment, no one answered so Elena figured they'd swing by after they got their movies. Allie had been bouncing with excitement; the storeowner smiled indulgingly at the sweet little girl and had given Allie a cup of hot chocolate to drink. They left the rental store 10 minutes later, hearing a faint 'No, I think I'll walk this one off.' Elena recognized it as Don's voice, unfortunately so had Allie. She grinned at her mother and tugged her along, in time to see Don kissing another woman.

Detective Angell to be exact.


	12. History

History

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI, I only own Elena, Allie, and the plot, or lack thereof.

Author's Note: Hi, some reviews would be nice, thanks.

* * *

Allie grew somber and opened her mouth to ask her father why he was kissing someone else that wasn't her mother. Elena covered Allie's mouth gently and led her befuddled daughter to the car. On the way home, Allie didn't make a peep, she wasn't excited to see the movies anymore, nor was she excited to see Daddy now either.

Allie curled up on the couch, snuggling into Elena, and watched the _Bee Movie_ listlessly, worrying Elena because her daughter usually would have been laughing her head off at this point. A knock sounded at the door; it was most likely Don. Elena got up to open the door as Allie clung to her, "Allie, sweetheart, I'm just gonna go let your daddy in, okay? I'll be right back."

"No, it's not okay." Allie still refused to let go of her mother. Elena gently but firmly set her back on the couch and hurried to open the door. Elena swung the door open just as Don was getting ready to bust it open. He looked at her worriedly, "Come in first, sorry 'bout that, it took me a little longer to get to the door than I expected." He looked haggard, older than he was, worried and depressed, "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine," he forced a smile. She'd ask him later, right now, there was a more pressing issue he had to deal with. Allie was hugging her knees to her chest and rocking back and forth when Allie and Don went to the living room.

"Hey, kiddo, sorry I'm late, I had to do something." She ignored him and hopped off as he sat next to her to hide behind Elena.

"Al, what's wrong?" Elena shook her head subtly, "Allie, honey, don't you have something you want to show Daddy?"

"No," came the succinct reply.

"Yes you do, you were really excited to show him your report card and your test weren't you?" Elena cajoled.

"I was, but I'm not anymore. Why did you…"

"Allie, no more pouting, go get your stuff from your backpack." Allie obeyed, watching her mother and father closely, her mother wasn't angry, at least not that she could tell. Elena sighed and rubbed her head as Don stood to join her, "Did I do somethin'?"

"She… she saw you kissing Detective Angell earlier, she doesn't know it was her though, she's never seen her."

"I was followin' Sam and I asked Jess for a ride, that didn't mean anything, I swear, I wasn't even thinking."

"It's not me you have to explain to, it's none of my business what your relationship with Angell is, Allie's the one you need to convince." He let it slide for now that it was damn sure her business and she let slide the fact that though he didn't think about kissing Angell but did it said a lot more. They both went to Allie's room to find her sulking on the bed, Don went to crouch in front of her, "Allie, that was a friend you saw me with, that's all."

"But you were kissing her like I see other mommies and daddies kiss, why did you kiss your friend but not mommy?" Don thought carefully while Elena gave their daughter a stern look. Allie really didn't understand and both her parents knew that she wasn't letting it go until they answered her question.

"Allie, mommy's been a little angry at your father, okay, it's hard to explain, but that nice lady really was just his friend." Elena knew her daughter still wasn't convinced and looked skyward, sighing and knowing she'd regret this, "Don, could you come over here for a sec." Don complied, wondering why she looked so pained.

He stopped in the doorway, next to her. She crooked her finger for him to come closer, matter-of-factly and resignedly. He bent closer to her and was shocked and thrilled when her hands came to rest on his face and her lips met his. He held her a little closer, not wanting to push his luck and ruin this little "show". He and she both knew that even though the kiss was meant to convince their daughter, the feelings were anything but faked. She pulled away, not meeting his eye, and went to her daughter, "Happy now?" Allie was beyond happy, she was delirious. Oh, the sacrifices a mother made for her child. She hadn't wanted to touch him or anything that would make her resentment evaporate, but the sake of her daughter, she'd had to. Then their little girl yawned, "I think it's time for bed."

"But I wanted to…"

"You can watch Batman and Superman with daddy tomorrow, but for now how about you settle for a bedtime story."

"Will you stay with us until I fall asleep, mommy?" Elena nodded, handing Don the storybook. She tried not to laugh when Don read with a goofy voice and tried to look disapproving when Allie was laughing more than she was getting to sleep. The little girl couldn't resist the hypnotizing weight of her heavy eyelids and fell deep asleep. Elena tucked the bed covers around her little girl more securely and joined Don at the door, turned off the lights, and left for the kitchen.

She purposely avoided the incident that happened, keeping her hands busy with the mundane task of making tea and coffee. She poured herself a cup of tea and Don a cup of coffee. She handed him his cup and said, "So what's up with Sam? I dropped by her apartment and she obviously wasn't there. Then you said something about walking it off, what happened?"

"You remember when she used to follow me around like a little puppy? After I went off to Narcotics and you skipped town, she just went backwards, downhill. Now my baby sister's afraid to talk to me, to tell me she's an alcoholic."

"So that's where you followed her, an AA meeting." He nodded, disgusted with himself, "She said her family was perfect and there she was, the black sheep. I never realized just how far gone Sam was. Where's that little girl?"

"She grew up, Don, its part of life. You couldn't have stopped it anymore than you could've stopped that building from blowing up." He looked so sad, his shoulders slumped in defeat and his usually blue-gray eyes a stormy dark blue that she wanted to give him a hug and tell him it was going to be okay. She hadn't realized that she really had been angry with Don up until the point she admitted it out loud, and now that she had, she wasn't angry anymore, because she couldn't be mad at someone she couldn't bring herself to trust. You could only feel anger if someone hurt you and you didn't expect it, you can't feel pain if you're already living in it and knew it was coming.

"Are you going to talk to her about it?"

"What am I gonna say, I know you have a drinking problem, I can help?" She waited quietly, knowing he was simply frustrated because he didn't know what to do. She got up and went to him, letting him pull her closer and hug her as if the last 7 years of estrangement hadn't occurred. She patted him on lower back, where her arms were around his waist, "Sam can't go back to being that innocent, guileless little girl, but you can help her become a stronger young woman. Right now, what she needs most is your support. You've always been her big brother, Don, her favorite brother, she can't hate you."

"But you can," he replied, hugging her even tighter. Elena didn't say anything, she _couldn't_ say anything or she'd give herself away. She ended up in his lap on the couch as he held her tight, his head in the crook of her neck, like he used to when he had a particularly rough day at work.

* * *

Don woke up with his head against the back of the couch and a slight pressure on his chest and his lap that made him smile. When he looked down, Elli's silky soft hair brushed his chin as she slept peacefully, his arms wrapped around her securely. He leaned his head back against the back of the couch and closed his eyes blissfully, wishing this moment would last forever. The fact that she hadn't removed herself from him when he'd fallen asleep made him smile: she hadn't changed much since he met her, still so soft regardless of how tough she acted on the outside. He tightened his hold around just a fraction, like she was a fragile gift that he didn't want taken away from him. And that was exactly the case. He didn't like the odds though, because if anyone were to take Elli away from him, that someone would be herself.

Allie padded into the room, rubbing her eyes sleepily and grinned at the sight of her mommy and daddy cuddled on the couch, sleeping. She carefully tiptoed towards her parents and climbed onto the cushion next to them before snuggling into her father's warmth. Don felt his daughter's small body against his forearm and wrapped her into his embrace as well, hearing her giggle quietly.

He hushed her in case she woke Elena. He felt her lips curve into a smile before she simply burrowed into his side and he covered her too with the large blanket around Elena and himself.

Don drifted back off to sleep, finally content for the first time in many, many years.

* * *

Elena woke up slowly, her mind piecing last night's events together. She realized with a start that she was still in Don's lap and cringed in mortification. She hadn't meant for it to happen, but his body was solid and comforting and she'd been so tired, so tired of having to be strong, she'd just fallen asleep.

Now Allie was on her legs, so how on earth was she supposed to get off.


	13. And Life Goes On

And Life Goes On

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Elena, Allie, and the plot.

Author's Note: It'd be nice to have a few more reviews, please; I've had Writer's Block for a while. I'd also like to add that if you haven't seen the episode last week, you probably shouldn't read this as it contains some spoilers. It is also not my fault that Don and Angell are together, that is the fault of the stupid producers or scriptwriters or whatnot, either way, flame them for that, not me.

* * *

It had already been more than a month since Elena returned to work and it was still more awkward than she expected, vicious vipers hissing venomous remarks behind her back and all. She kept amazingly stoic as she took the elevator to her office until a particularly scathing assassination on her character made her involuntarily flinch slightly. She pretended not to hear and stared straight at the elevator panels, willing the trip to go faster. She mentally sighed in relief when the bell dinged and the panels slid open to the morgue. There was irony in that.

"You know, it's pretty bad when you seem more comfortable around dead bodies than you are around the living," Sheldon commented from behind her.

"Does that say something about the living or the dead?" Elena quipped dryly. Sheldon chuckled softly. Sid was already at the table on Sheldon's newest vic. He turned to Elena with disgruntled frown, "Don't let them bother you, they're just busybodies who can't mind their own business." Elena smiled, "I'll go get changed. Thanks, Sid." It took her about 5 minutes to change out of her khaki dress pants, black three-quarter sleeve blouse half-buttoned, and white tank top. She left her crystal lock and key necklace around her neck.

* * *

Don walked into the squad room and Angell smiled as he entered her line of vision and nodded to the uniform she was talking to, signifying the end of the conversation. She followed him to his desk and chatted while he put his stuff away. Elli would have simply smiled her greeting and left it at that if they had worked together while they had been dating.

* * *

Everyone got up today thinking it was going to be a normal day of murder and mayhem, and it was, except it wasn't exactly the _normal_ chaos that happened. As the day went on, things started getting crazier and crazier, Don was accused of murder, Angell flipped a bitch, and Mac didn't seem very happy, it just wasn't their best day all around. Such were Elena's thoughts as she finished the autopsy. As the interns wheeled in another body, Mac came in with it, a severe frown on his face. His mouth grim, he spoke tersely to Sid and marched out impatiently. She could tell he was irritated, which meant the case somehow got under his skin, she wasn't going to ask why though. Not that she had to, because Stella came barging in minutes later and dragged Elena into her office before proceeding with her rant about how "biased and pigheaded those stupid IR agents" were. Stella was pacing and gesturing frantically to vent her frustrations, so agitatedly that Elena decided to step in before Stella blew up.

"Stel, stop," she commanded, spinning Stella to face her and sitting her in her chair, "you need to calm down or your blood pressure's going to become dangerous for both you and the baby." Stella took a few deep breaths under Elena's concernedly stern gaze before Elena spoke again, "Now, slowly tell me what happened." Stella told Elena precisely, concisely that a suspect died in custody, IR suspected that Don might have used excessive force and accidentally killed the suspect, and Angell was too busy worrying about _her_ words that she couldn't have cared less about how Don might be feeling. She of course went on another hormone-driven rant about how Angell was a selfish, thoughtless bitch. Elena nodded in understanding.

"That explains why Mac was so bothered about the body that Sid's doing the autopsy on now, because he wants to prove Don's innocence."

"Don would never kill anybody," Stella pleaded, tears shimmering, willing Elena to believe her. Elli smiled, "I know, I know, I'm not saying that Don's guilty, I'm just saying the IR needs the proof is all, because they're stupid, blind, moronic, biased, idiotic, have I mentioned stupid yet?" Stella chuckled, feeling a little bit better that at least Elena was on their side. Elena put a hand on her shoulder and Stella looked up, "Don't worry, Stella, Sid is doing his job and Don will be free from that evil desk duty that he hates so much in no time and we'll go back to living our blissfully ignorant lives. Besides, Detective Angell won't let Don sulk for long." Stella snorted in disbelief.

Elena rolled her eyes.

* * *

"Allie, honey, we're gonna go see Daddy, how's that?"

"Yay! But why, Mommy?" Allie asked as an afterthought, her mommy usually said no when she asked to go see her daddy after school because she said Daddy was busy.

"Don't you wanna see Daddy?"

"Yes, but…" Allie trailed off, her mom was bundling her into the car, and when her mommy didn't wanna answer a question, it didn't matter how many times she asked, Mommy still wouldn't answer. So, she talked about school as they drove the police station.

* * *

Elena pulled Allie to a stop outside of the squad room when she heard Mac's voice and Don's exhausted reply. Mac passed by them with a nod, no longer looking as stern as he had been earlier. Elena gave Allie the go ahead even as her daughter slipped in and past the few other lingering detectives. Allie turned back to Elena with a mischievous smile that was met with an exasperated, inaudible sigh and an eye roll, but her mother complied. Picking Allie up so that she could wrap her arms around Don, she moved a little closer until Allie flung her arms around her daddy's neck with a delighted squeal. As surprised as he was, Don chuckled and easily juggled Allie's weight. He looked over his shoulder to see his precious little girl's beaming face and he didn't feel so bad anymore. He looked over at Elli and her moss green eyes twinkled lightly as a slight smile tilted her lips, he thought she looked like a beautiful angel the way the sunlight slanting in from the sunset seemed to make her glow and decided that his horrible day wasn't so horrible after all.

"I figured you might want Allie with you, but it looks like you don't need the company now."

"Mac only offered 'cause he thought I would be all lonely tonight, I'm sure he'd rather be at home with Stella instead of watching hockey with me," Don said, swinging Allie up into his arms and grabbing his suitcase. The trio left the station with Mac helping Stella into their car, "You won't be needing my paltry comfort, then." It was a statement, not a question, to which Don replied with a grateful grin and Allie waved at them before climbing into her father's car.

It wasn't until later that he realized the lock-and-key, crystal necklace around Elena was wearing was the one he'd bought her for their 3rd anniversary before they broke up.

* * *

Don held Allie in his lap as they watched Elena flit about the kitchen, fixing dinner. She hadn't said a word about what happened at work and simply indulged Allie's every whims of dinner and movies. If anybody were to walk in on the little family, they would have felt as though they were intruding on a hallmark moment. They joked and laughed and teased, merely enjoying the familiarity and playfulness. He missed this with Elena; he had never been able to relax enough with his girlfriends for either of them to stay the night, much less the morning after. As close and as "friendly" as he and Angell had gotten, she was no Elena, she could never put his needs before hers while still being able to meet him on level ground, she could never care enough about someone else to sacrifice herself, and she could never make him love her.

This, to Don, was the most terrifying truth of all.

* * *

Elena, while not oblivious to Don's turmoil, _was_ oblivious to the fact that said turmoil had everything to do with her and nothing to do with what she thought it had to do with, namely his fight with Angell or Sam.

At her urging, Don had sat Sam down to talk with Elena nearby to intervene if things got out of hand. They had all their confrontations and both she and Don managed to get Sam, at the very least, to take rehabilitation more seriously, though this took considerable bribing. Sam argued that if they wanted her to get better, they'd have to give her some motivation. In other words, she wanted to spend some time with her niece, to which Elena agreed that she was welcome over at her house and Don conceded as well. The impish glint in Sam's eyes expressed everything the girl wanted to say: she wanted to baby-sit Allie so Elena and Don could have some privacy and so that they could plot together. Elena and Don leveled disapproving and stern frowns at her. Elena conceded though, thinking that Don probably didn't have reconciliation in mind so they could just take those hours to do whatever they had to do respectively.

She was actually quite wrong.

And little did she know that at that very moment, Stella and Lindsay were already plotting her capitulation: the annual ball which attendance was mandatory.


	14. Reaction

Reaction

Disclaimer: I do not own anything but Elena, Allie, and the plot.

Author's Note: I apologize profusely for the absurdly late update, don't exactly have any motivation.

* * *

Lindsay and Stella grinned at each other across the coffee shop table, the object of their joy lay between their forgotten mugs of tea. Lindsay rubbed her hands together in anticipation as the tip of her tongue darted out to corner of her lips in great evil… well, if anybody asked Elena.

But nobody did, so it was just maniacal excitement that oozed from their pores. The object in question was the "invitation" to the mandatory function in two days.

* * *

"Oh, no. No, no, no…" Elena denied, shaking her head in denial. Stella smiled winningly at her, "Come on, it'll be fun." Lindsay nodded and grinned, "Think about it, Sam can take Allie, you get the night off, and we get a girls' night out." At Elli's droll stare she amended, "Ok, girls' night out might be pushing it, but you do get the night off." Elena shook her head firmly, "No. I don't need the night off from Allie. Besides, I'm on call that night."

"Yep, but that just means you have to bring your badge and kit," Danny interceded, walking into the break room to grab a cup of coffee. Lindsay glanced back at her husband with a gleeful look of appreciation. Elena put her foot firmly down, "N-O, no, it's not going to happen."

"What's not going to happen?" Mac asked.

"The function," his wife replied succinctly. A grim smile, "Ah, yeah, the function. You don't have a choice, the mayor's party isn't optional attendance, even Sid is going."

"Then I'll be the first." Elena grabbed her cup of tea and went out the door.

Stella shook her head and tsked mock-regretfully.

"Well, she made us do this," Lindsay sighed.

* * *

Don, while confused at Stella's insistence that he take Elena out, dropped by the morgue after work anyway. Elena looked suspicious – scratch that, she looked downright wary. But she acquiesced, probably because she knew he was as confused as she was. Sam had called Elena earlier to tell her that she'd get Allie from school, so Elli had no reason to push off Don's invitation. She knew something was up the minute Don told her that Stella had given him tickets to the movie when she'd asked how he managed to leave during work.

After dinner and the movie, they swung by Sam's apartment to pick Allie up. Sam buzzed them up after a second. Allie was thrilled to see both her parents together and flung herself at her dad, "Daddy!" Elena smiled at the now familiar sight. Then her daughter turned to her in her father's arms, "Mommy, can I spend the night here on Friday?"

"Sure, what brought this on?"

"Aunt Sam said you and Daddy were going to a ball. Does that mean you get to dress up like Cinderella?" Elena shot Sam a dark look to which Sam shrugged innocently and smiled.

"Now what stories have you been filling her head with?" Don caught on now and finally understood why Stella had been so adamant: she'd wanted him to stall Elena long enough for them to recruit their daughter for the cause. He wisely stayed silent. Besides his daughter was as tenacious as he and Elli were, he didn't have to say anything.

* * *

Elena poked her head around the curtain of the dressing room for the umpteenth time, disgruntled and weary, "This one reminds me of a hippo." Stella and Lindsay laughed, "Elena you're a beanpole."

"I'm not saying I look like a hippo, I'm saying this dress reminds me of a hippo."

"Oh, this one will look perfect," Stella exclaimed. Elena had to admit that this dress was beautiful, a simple elegance. The gown was a shimmering black spaghetti strap, empress waist, the flowing skirt with an extra layer of filmy material. She tried it on and grudgingly had no complaints. She stepped out of the dressing room. Lindsay and Stella beamed at her and Elena decided that if a little sacrifice brought her pregnant and suffering friends such joy, she wouldn't begrudge them happiness.

"Don won't know what hit him."

"Wait, what?!"

"Oh, did we forget to mention that Don's picking you up tomorrow night."

"Stella…"

* * *

Allie squealed and clapped her hands in delight, "You look like a princess, Mommy." Elena rolled her eyes as she pinned her curls in a neatly casual pile with a few tendrils hanging by her cheeks. She'd put on minimum makeup, some eye shadow, a bit of blush, some lip gloss, and put on the simple diamond necklace and bracelet set Papi had given to her for her 21st birthday. She slipped on the two-inch stiletto sandals and grabbed her black purse with her badge and some money in it. A knock at the door sent Allie racing to the front door. Elena walked out just as Don knelt to his daughter.

Don looked up and simply stared. He wouldn't have been surprised if his jaw dropped to the floor. It took a very conscious effort to not drool. It didn't matter how many times he saw, she looked more and more beautiful everyday, though granted she could be stubborn as a mule and dense as a brick when she so chose, but he still treasured every moment. He honestly thought Elli was a fairy, even in black. Her smooth shoulders bared, delicate neck framed by the dark, shiny waves of her hair, the contrast simply set off her flawless porcelain skin that seemed to make her even more radiant.

Her appearance seemed almost ethereal.

He stood and she literally had to force herself to breath. Dressed in a tux, Don looked like a handsome prince straight out of a fairytale – and her sinking, pounding heart to something in his riveted gaze unnerved her even more than his looming presence. She smiled nervously, feeling ridiculous to boot, "We should probably head to Sam's now." He nodded and moved for her to get her coat.

* * *

She felt small and delicate next to him, even with the additional two inches. They were walking through the reception area, weaving through the masses. Don positioned himself slightly in front of Elena, one hand on the small of her back, his posture and gesture both possessive and protective. Elena spotted Stella and Mac and tugged on the edge of Don's jacket, nodding towards their friends.

* * *

Stella chuckled when she saw Elli and Don, they were a perfect couple, physically and otherwise, now if Elli would simply admit that and let it happen…

"What are you laughing about now?"

"Look at them, Mac, they obviously love each other."

"Stella…" Mac sighed, he loved his wife dearly and while she could be meddlesome, he hadn't forgotten that that was one of her many endearing qualities. He just didn't want her to be disappointed when her hopes were crushed. He could see his friend cared deeply for the woman he had a child with, he also knew that Elena still rated higher on his priorities by a 32nd of a millimeter than his daughter, but at the end of the day, it was up to Elena. She'd become an important member of the team and while she was hard to read, Mac knew that she used her casual friendliness as her wall, to protect herself from getting hurt again.

Or more accurately, to protect her heart from Don.

* * *

They reached Stella and Mac at the same time Don spotted Danny, Lindsay, and Sheldon. It took another 15 minutes for the rest of the gang to join them. When everyone was gathered they went off to find their table and Don, Elena, Stella, Mac, Sheldon, Lindsay, Danny, and Sid were seated at the same table with the seating arrangement in that same order at one of the circular tables. Elena unconsciously shifted a little closer to Don, sensing stares on her, making her uncomfortable.

* * *

Stella saw the tiny movement and grinned to Lindsay. Lindsay whispered to Sheldon and Danny, "How much do you wanna bet no one's had the guts to come any close to Elena tonight because of Don. He's practically oozing back-off-she's-mine vibes. I have to admit, he looked a little scary when he glared at that aide earlier. The poor guy just wanted Elena's name." Danny and Sheldon chuckled at their friend's expense, it was true, Don had been so completely possessive of Elena in the short span of time they'd been there it was hilarious to watch all the horny bastards pale and shrink under Don's stare.

* * *

"Well, well, such a surprise to see you here, Elena, my dear."

Tension gripped her fragile frame at the leery rasp, her tight fist hidden beneath Don's much larger hand. Her voice many degrees blow subzero, she said, "Hello, _father_."


	15. Cold Blood

Cold Blood

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and my characters yada, yada, blah… R&R please!

Author's Note: Hi, sorry I haven't updated in a while. I appreciate those who reviewed and am kindly asking for more reviews please. Enjoy!

* * *

Don was very sure that he had never pissed off Elena to this degree and quite certain that he never wanted to. And while he knew there'd been bad blood between Elena and her old man, it was obviously worse than he'd realized. Her once warm hand was as cold as the steel in her eyes and her frame as rigid as an iceberg. Don casually wrapped an arm around her soft shoulders. She relaxed a little. Stella stiffened her spine and looked like she was ready to tear someone's face off. Mac's game face was back on, and considering how much he hated playing the politics game, that was saying something. Sheldon, Danny, Lindsay, and Sid simply watched in fascination.

Elena turned around to face the man whose sperm sired her. He was never her father and never would be. She coolly met his dark obsidian gaze.

"I didn't expect to see you here," he sneered, his tone implying that she wasn't important enough to warrant an invitation. Don had to bite his tongue from the stinging remark. Elli had always fought these battles alone, but she wouldn't be alone this time.

"Hello, congressman. It's been a long time." Stefano Marino cast an uninterested glance in Don's direction until he registered Don's comment. His shrewd gaze on Don, his brains working miles a second. After a calculating minute, Stefano finally said, "Ah, Don Jr., it has indeed been a long time. How is your father, I hope he is well."

"He is thank you. It's been interesting seeing you again." Don turned Elli so her back was to the elder Marino again and began talking to Mac and the others as if Stefano Marino had never intruded. Elena and Stella laughed more easily, Mac was quicker to smile and the others were just being themselves. Elena knew Stefano was steaming inside; he was a narcissist, plain and simple. People's attention had to be on him 24/7 or the world was off its kilter and unsurprisingly she couldn't give a damn if he went and threw a hissy fit right now.

"Speaking of which, Lindsay, when's the baby due?"

"Sometime between now and next month." Lindsay had been on maternity leave for a few months, but being on leave evidently didn't mean she was off the hook for the annual ball. Stella was a couple weeks away from her maternity leave after having just entered her third trimester and was having some issues or another with Mac being too overprotective. Stella and Lindsay had both settled comfortably against their other halves and Mac and Danny had their arms protectively around their women. Elena laughed softly, "How are your wife and kids, Sid?"

"Oh they were just laughing their heads off at my expense when I couldn't put on my bow tie and nearly strangled myself," Sid replied dryly. He scowled and muttered, "They're also enjoying the fact that I get to be tortured while they're having a movie night."

"By the way, why isn't Adam here, I thought this party was mandatory," Elena asked, her challenging gaze zeroed on Stella and Lindsay. They almost looked a little sheepish until Sheldon gestured with his chin at Mac; a flustered Adam was trying to make his way to the table without any spells but ended up bumping around like a pinball.

"Hey Adam," Lindsay smiled, handing Adam a napkin to wipe off the splash of champagne on his jacket.

He tugged at his bow tie uncomfortably and looked horribly uncomfortable, "I'm just glad tailcoats weren't required," Adam breathed in relief.

"Amen to that," Danny and Sheldon echoed.

"Penguins in New York? I thought they lived in the zoo." The entire crew tried hard not to laugh too loudly and Elena nudged Don in the side with her elbow in reprimand. Don grinned and pulled her closer, his hand around her waist as he leaned into his seat a little. Elena didn't seem to notice how intimate their position and proximity were, Don was sure that if she were, she'd have pulled away by now.

* * *

After the mayor's speech, all the occupants in the ballroom were content tired and Elena had begun to lean against Don. Anybody could see how well Elena fit with Don and how special she was to him, so anyone with half a brain cell would have done the smart thing and stayed the hell away from Elena. But sadly, nobody ever said the world was full of geniuses.

Lucinda St. Luc, Lucy to her friends, was a buxom blonde and a disgrace the female species, she was hell on three-inch heels and low-cut strapless gown. She was fuller than Elena, but everybody suspected she'd gotten enhancements, not that she'd ever admit it. She was taller, a genetic advantage, and had big blue eyes that she batted at every male in the vicinity on a daily basis, trying to look innocent and wholesome and succeeding at neither. The plunging neckline revealed more than just a little cleavage and as impressive as her Barbie chest was, even it could barely hold up two barely-held-together pieces of fabric. When she extracted herself from the crowd and reached the table, Lindsay thought the dress resembled a negligee more than a party dress, her make up and heels made her look like she was getting ready for a tryst than anything else. She beamed at Don and tapped his shoulder to get his attention.

Don glanced her way for a split second and then focused on Elena again.

"Donny, you promised me a dance tonight," she whined with a sultry pout.

He didn't even bother answering her, instead, he said, "Come on, Elli, let's go home."

Elena blinked at him blearily, a little confused, her mind kinda fuzzy. It was almost one in the morning and considering the tiny sip of champagne she'd taken, the wine made her sleepy. He smiled endearingly and slipped his hands under her arms to help her stand. He held her close to his side and they bid the others goodbye, completely forgetting Lucinda.

Don and Elli nearly ran into Lucinda when she stepped straight into their path. Elena knew she'd been hoping that Don would run straight into her. Don tried to sidestep the irritating woman, "Excuse us." She wouldn't quit and kept getting in his way, "But Donny you promised me a dance, besides what does that slut have that I don't." She latched onto one of his arms that were surrounding Elli and yanked at him.

"Hey, careful!" Don dislodged her while taking care he didn't lose hold of Elli and glared at the woman, "Lady, I don't know who you are, but one, don't you dare insult her again, and two, my name's not Donny." Lucinda gaped at him in disbelief – she'd been rubbing against him for the past few minutes and he'd just brushed her aside! Elena was starting to get a headache from all the noise and let Don lead her.

"Elena, my dear! The senator would like to meet my family." Elena froze again, no longer sleepy. She continued after an instant, as if she hadn't heard the bastard. A hand clamped around her elbow, her training kicked in and she inconspicuously tried to drive her heel into his instep – she only missed because he'd stumbled over someone's foot and lost his grip. Now that was karma. She trudged on and Stefano managed to catch up to her and Don just as they got to the wide doors.

"Elena, you ungrateful girl, come with me, the senator wants to meet you. He's taken a liking to you and this could be the break of my career." He gripped her elbow again but quickly dropped it at Don's look. He sneered, "Ah, little whore that you are, already find another pimp to do your dirty work?"

"Back off." Elena commanded quietly. Her back ramrod straight and emerald eyes glittering dangerously, her tone neutral and calm, she was emitting a very formidable aura and in that moment, Don knew that Elena was definitely not the same girl he'd known for years, she'd changed – she'd become much stronger. Stefano curled his lip and grabbed her wrist. She moved as quickly as lightning, slipping out of his grasp and squeezing his thumb with the slightest pressure. He paled considerably as he tried not to let the pain show, "I told you to back off. You can take your 'Elena, dear's and shove it up yours right behind your precious career. I will not let you pimp me out to your pompous, narcissistic friends." She backed away from him as if he were filth and took Don's hand. Before they left, she turned around just enough to look him in the eye, "If you ever come near Allie, Papi, or me, I will make sure that all the skeletons in your closet come tumbling out into the light." He knew what she was talking about even if Don didn't.

And he knew she would keep her word.

* * *

Don shut the door behind him, dropping his duffel bag by the door. Elli hadn't protested when he grabbed it from his trunk and instinct told him Elli was vulnerable tonight, that it was his chance. It was underhanded, but as noted before, he'd rather risk her wrath than face losing her again. They both changed and Don came out of the bathroom to find her huddled up on the couch. He settled next to her and shifted her into his lap. She didn't resist, simply turned her face into the crook of his neck and shoulder and curled into him. He held her in silence, gently stroking her back with his palm.


	16. Tried and True

Tried and True

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Elena, Allie, and the plot.

Author's Note: Read and review please. This may or may not be the last chapter, so I don't know when I'll talk to you guys again, but I'll try not to make it too long.

* * *

She took a deep breath.

"He always locked me in the basement at night, with the rats and spiders," she whispered, not knowing where to start. Don cupped the back of her head, pressing her closer to him.

"I can only remember it starting from when I was two. I could never please him or my mother. He belted me, whipped me. When he had a bad day at work, he would come home and turn me into his punching bag. I remember being tossed into the yard like a rag doll, there were a few times when he nearly beat me to death. I'd end up with broken bones, fractures, concussions; Papi had to take me to the ER a few times because breathing became a problem for me. I was either choking on my own blood or I was bleeding from my nose or a head wound. After he moved out here to the city to further his status, he came home about once every blue moon and the cycle would begin again. I learned to take every blow without a sound, without flinching, and without crying afterwards. I learned to nurse my own injuries, to rely on no one else, to protect myself." She let out a shaky breath, desperately wanting him to understand.

"Your mom didn't do anything?" Don asked quietly, trying to keep the anger out of his voice. His heart broke from the cruelty she suffered at the hands of those who should have protected her, loved her. She let out a staccato laugh, "I told you I learned not to rely on anyone, I learned that lesson when I was three, it was the first time he used his fists and I cried out for my mother. She walked into the kitchen, took one look at my father, and walked out without a backward glance." Bitter tears clogged her throat. One single drop escaped down her cheek onto Don's t-shirt. Don gripped her even tighter, pressing her firmly against his firm chest. She buried her face in his shirt for a while.

"But Gramps didn't…"

"Papi did what he could, but…Regardless of what he did he was still the only one who loved me, who took care of me. All my father did was knock me around, mother dearest was never there, and my older brothers and sisters just bullied me." Her voice remained level, resigned, "Then Papi brought me to the park and I met you."

"That's why you always went missing every once in a while." She nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me, we could've worked something out?"

"Do you mean before or after we started dating?" He gave her an incredulous look she interpreted as surprise that timing had mattered.

"You couldn't have done anything as a teenager and considering how much influence he had in the police department back in our small town, do you honestly think you could have done anything to him after we started dating. Beside the fact that there were other issues at the time…" She omitted anything else involving their relationship, the fact that they'd been engaged at one point and the fact that he'd been the one to break up with her. He mentally cringed; her silent words were berating him and the guilt weighing heavily on his heart simply intensified.

"I won't let anyone hurt you ever again," Don vowed. He needed her to cry, to reassure him that she wasn't broken beyond repair. She let out a small laugh again, "You can't promise that, because the last time you said that to me you ended up being the one who dealt the fatal blow. I'm done trusting."

"Damn it, no you're not! I never cheated on you, I just went to Bella to vent, that was it, I didn't know she was slipping crap into my pocket when she hugged me. I honestly didn't mean to hurt you, Elli, I swear!"

"It doesn't matter anymore, fact is, I am done. You're still welcome to stay the night whenever you like, because no matter how bad you hurt me, you gave me my life back. Allie's the only thing that kept me going all those years, she made the first half of my life worth it just to look into her smiling face everyday. And that's all I need." She started to extricate herself from him but he was having none of it.

"No, you're going to listen to me, I am _not_ going to lose you again! I've been thinking about you a whole hell of a lot and I've missed having you wake up beside me, missed your smiles, missed hearing you laugh, hell, I even missed having you nag at me to eat my spinach, everything."

"Remember what I told you before, hindsight's always 20/20. But it's just that: history. There are some things that should be left as they ended."

"You also told me that everyone deserves a second chance. This is _our_ second chance." She couldn't refute that, because it was true, she had said that.

"That was a long time ago, we've both changed."

"Yeah, but I know one thing hasn't changed." He framed her face gently but firmly in both his hands and leaned down to touch their foreheads while holding her gaze, "I love you, always have and always will." He kissed her and for a long time after that, neither said anything. They lay entwined and for the first time in what seemed like forever, Elena slept through the night without nightmares plaguing her subconscious.

* * *

She woke before he did, they were both in her bed and she knew he must have moved them into her room after she'd fallen asleep on the couch. One of his legs was thrown over hers, one arm wrapped around her waist and another around her shoulder. His deep breathing told her he was still asleep. She moved her legs and nearly grimaced when he shifted so a good portion of his body mass was comfortably pressing her into the soft mattress. She wasn't uncomfortable with his familiar weight, or the familiar position, or his familiar warmth, she was just uncomfortable with the familiarity! She carefully tried to extract herself from his trap and scowled when he mumbled unintelligibly and tightened his hold on her. She resigned herself to lying there and pretending to sleep when he stirred.

With any luck, he would have to get up to go to work and decide not to wake her.

Or so she thought.

She resisted the urge to sigh but sank back into the bed.

* * *

Don smothered a blooming grin when Elli stopped trying to move away. He had had much more practice at this game because he'd played it with her so often. He knew she would fall back to sleep after a while so he was content to wait. She'd fallen asleep in his lap last night and he'd carried her to bed, smiling like the besotted fool he was. Fool because it'd taken him so long to realize that he loved her and besotted because he was in love with her to the point that if she were so inclined to want the sun he'd find a way to get it for her. He'd watched her sleep, so peaceful, so serene, so beautiful.

She'd curled into him like a cat, breathing deeply against his neck and occasionally making little noises in her sleep. Why couldn't she be as trusting when she was awake? She used to be, so affectionate, more open. He hadn't realized just how much he'd missed her until he finally had her back with him last night. One arm across his chest and the other pinned between both their bodies, she'd been utterly boneless and relaxed. That was how he wanted her to be around him. She still wasn't ready to accept a relationship yet, and Don could wait, but he'd push, he most definitely would do his damnedest to remind her of the way things were and how they should be.

* * *

He finally conceded defeat when he had to get up to answer nature's call. When he returned, the bed was empty and he could hear her in the kitchen. He waltzed into the kitchen in his boxers and short-sleeve undershirt, not bothering to change, _she might as well start gettin' used to me again_, he thought cheerfully.

"Morning," he murmured, wrapping himself around her as she stood at the stove with her back to him and cooking breakfast. He nuzzled her neck with his nose before gently kissing the same sensitive spot.

"Hey! That's not fair, you know I'm ticklish. Go away, let me cook in peace." She said laughingly, trying to subtly move away from him. She was still pretending they were just friends. His arms completely circled her waist, his hands resting on their opposite hips. Well, a friend wouldn't be owning her private space, plastered against her back and a friend would definitely not be nosing the shell of her sensitive ear and placing gentle little kisses along her jaw from her ear down.

"Don, go away!"

"Not a chance," he murmured against her ear. He was doing his best to distract her, but she'd be damned if she let him win. The doorbell suddenly rang and Don cursed while Elli laughed quietly at her narrow escape, _saved by the bell_, she thought triumphantly. She opened the door to find Sam and Allie beaming at her. Allie bounced past her when she heard Daddy's voice in the kitchen and Sam gave Elli a sly grin as her half-dressed brother plopped his little girl in his lap and attentively listened to her niece.


	17. Epilogue

"Epilogue"

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI: NY, I only own the plot, Allie, and Elena. Also if you haven't seen the season finale or season premiere, there are spoilers, so be warned.

Author's Note: I apologize for not updating in so long, but I haven't gotten many reviews and I was torn between leaving the ending as the way it was or to continue writing. Read and review!

* * *

Elena watched Don's strong front crumple silently as he broke the news of Angell's death to the rest of the team, her heart breaking for him. His shoulders sagged in defeat, tears of sadness swimming in his stormy blue eyes. She didn't approach him, knowing that he'd push her away, knowing that he needed his space. She'd rushed to the hospital hearing that a detective had been severely injured, her heart lodged in her throat she'd raced to the operation room and found Don pacing frantically, tension gripping his frame. She'd known then that the only person who could have him so close to the edge was Jessica Angell. She'd stayed in the shadows even after the team arrived and left after a little while as the CSIs grieved over a lost colleague.

* * *

"Mommy, mommy, what's wrong?" Allie frowned. Her mother had been acting weird all day, like she wasn't really paying attention.

Elena blinked back into attention and simply hugged her daughter, "Something bad happened today, but you don't have to worry, Mommy'll be alright." It was Don that she worried wouldn't recover. She'd gone through the rest of the day in a daze, much like everyone else of the Crime Lab and NYPD. Angell may have been Don's girlfriend, but she didn't resent Elena as Elena had expected. She'd wanted to become friends, that much had been clear, and Elena had as well. Angell had told her that she knew Don didn't love her, but that wasn't going to stop her from trying to make the two of them work out, and Angell had believed that becoming Elena's friend was the first step. But Jess had been wrong, Elena knew that Don loved Jessica Angell and always would. They'd even planned to have Jess and Don take Allie out to play for a day, the same day she died. Allie would never have the chance to meet her would-be stepmother. She held Allie for a little longer before she finally said, "Okay, bedtime, kiddo." Allie hopped off obediently and climbed into bed. She handed a storybook to Elena hopefully. Elena smiled sadly, "How about I tell you a story about a brave friend and smart detective."

"Like Daddy?" Elena nodded and began to tell Angell's story, fighting to keep the tears at bay, and she began.

"This friend was beautiful, generous, and kind. She gave more than received, always. She was loyal to her friends, couldn't stand injustice, and fought for fairness and equality for those who deserved it. She was smart and brave, she was also very compassionate. One day, after she'd gotten a call for a case, she and her partner responded quickly. She knew it was dangerous, she knew the bad guy had a gun, but she went anyway, because her partner went and she loved her partner more than he would ever know…" Her voice caught on the large lump in her throat. She swallowed then continued, "They both went in, both were very careful, but the bad guy was ready for them and shot at her partner. Remember how mommy said she loved her partner very much?" Allie nodded, "Well, she knew that if her partner got shot, he could die, so she pushed him out of the way and she got hurt instead. She died in the hospital later." Elena could barely keep her voice even and counted herself lucky that her daughter wasn't looking at her.

"Mommy, I want to grow and be just like you and your friend," Allie murmured, on the edge of sleep.

"You will, I know you will," Elena whispered through her tears. She closed the door quietly on the way out before she let her tears escape. She sobbed at the loss of a friend, at the unfairness of it all, "I know you'll be watching over everyone, especially Don, from heaven, because you are your namesake, Jessica Angell, you _are_ an angel."

* * *

It'd been about a couple weeks since Angell's death, they'd caught the ones responsible and Don had taken a leave of absence. So Stella and Lindsay had left their children with Danny's mother as the CSI team and Don went out for drinks. They'd convinced Elena to tag along and have Sam watch Allie, the only reason Elena had actually gone was because Don had gone along with it and grabbed her on her way out. He hadn't completely withdrawn from her, but he might as well have; he hadn't seen nor called Allie since that day at the hospital, Allie wasn't asking questions yet, but Elena knew she would soon.

"…a toast to Jessica Angell," Elena heard Stella say. She lifted her glass in sincere agreement. Before they had a chance to lift the drinks to their lips, glass exploded all around them and Elena could hear the pandemonium breaking out, all the screams, the rapid-fire sounds, and splintering wood, as time seemed to freeze. The next thing she knew, she didn't have time to react as Don dragged her to the floor. He covered her completely with his body, pressing her into the shattered glass. She felt him shift and cautiously inch off her, the movement told her he'd just drawn his gun. She looked over to Mac and saw that he too had his 9-millimeter aimed out of whatever was left of the window. She looked around and saw Sheldon covering Stella, Danny over Lindsay, and Adam lying there, dazed. As her eyes adjusted to the dimness she saw Danny roll off Lindsay, but something was wrong.

"I can't move my legs," Danny panted, he pulled his hand from underneath him: it was covered in blood. All Elena remembered was she and Hawkes hovering over Danny and those injured, waiting for the ambulances to arrive.

* * *

A month passed by worryingly, Mac grew obsessed with catching the culprits of the bar shooting that had paralyzed his detective from the waist down and Don had completely cut off contact with Allie and Elena. Lindsay and Stella were trying to stay strong for their men, but Elena knew how hard it was on them, how stressed out they were from having to shoulder everything and watch their infants at the same time. Lindsay had returned to the lab as had Stella, cutting her maternity leave short. Elena headed up to Stella's office, knowing the caramel-eyed Greek would be there. She knocked on the door lightly, "Stella?"

"Hey, is something wrong?"

"I should be asking you that," Elena replied steadily. Stella tried to deny it, but her friend's matter-of-fact expression told her it would be futile, she sighed.

"I don't know what to do, I honestly don't. Mac's been so buried in the case that he barely comes home at night and when he does he's only there for a few hours of sleep before he's back in that damn evidence room staring at those godforsaken window shards! He hasn't even really held his son." Stella mumbled miserably. Elena met her eyes calmly.

"That's what you're afraid of, isn't it? It's not the actual obsession, that only worries you, it's what the obsession is doing to your family that terrifies you." It wasn't a question that required an answer, but Stella's silence said it all.

"Have you talked to him about it?"

"Have I had the chance to?" Stella retorted. Elena smiled slightly, "You've had plenty, you just need to learn to recognize them. Now, stop thinking about it and let's go grab Lindsay for lunch." Stella smiled a little and decided to heed the sound advice. The three left the Lab for the café across the street. It was a beautiful day, perfect sunshine and blue skies, it was a shame nobody could appreciate it. Elena took a good look at Lindsay and said to the waiter, "Actually, change that coffee to a hot chocolate, please." She turned to a confused Lindsay; "You've been running on coffee for the past month and little else for sustenance, so do us all a favor and eat a little more, you're no good to Danny or Lucy if you crash." Lindsay winced at the bluntness, but she knew Elena was right. This was the reason she liked Elena so much, the woman could be blunter than a sledgehammer, but honesty was her policy, she was also saying this as a concerned friend, so her independence didn't balk too much at being ordered around by the slender woman.

"How's Danny doing?" Lindsay exhaled deeply, "He hates that chair, I know he does, but he tries to hide it from me, he's already given up, he talks like he expects to spend the rest of his life in that chair. I don't know what to do, I really don't."

"Then you'll just keep the hope up for both of you, you've been doing that Linds, but you and Danny aren't alone, at the very least, you have me and Stella."

"She's right, Danny will be up and tossing Lucy into the air in no time." Lindsay grinned gratefully at her two best friends, "Thanks, guys." Their food came and as they ate, the thought suddenly occurred to Stella and Lindsay, "Hey, Elena, how's Don?" Their friend shrugged, "You guys probably know better than I do."

"What are you talking about?" Elena shrugged again, "He hasn't called nor seen Allie since Jess died. I can hazard a guess and say he's hanging out at bars and picking up women so he can dull the pain of losing her." Stella and Lindsay stared at her in shock.

"What? Just because you guys try to ignore that truth about Don doesn't mean I should."

"Don's the most loyal and faithful man next to Danny and Mac."

"I'm not saying he isn't, but he's not exclusively dating anyone, just sleeping around, and his cohorts are more than happy to keep him company." It hurt Elena more deeply than she cared to admit, but her friends didn't need to know that. She kept her face carefully neutral and her tone carefully flippant. Stella and Lindsay couldn't fathom what was going through Elena's mind, she didn't seem to care one way or another that the father of her child was screwing random women he picked up at bars.

"It doesn't bother you?" Stella asked, gauging Elena's reaction.

"Hey, he isn't mine, what he does is his own business," Elena replied, polishing off her salad. Lindsay and Stella exchanged a disbelieving glance.

* * *

"Mommy, did I make Daddy mad?" Startled Elena looked down at her frowning daughter. She knelt and kissed Allie's forehead, "Of course not, sweetheart, you didn't do anything wrong and your father's not angry at you."

"Then why hasn't he come see me in such a long time?" No matter how many times Elena rehearsed this answer in her head, she couldn't bring herself to lie or tell the truth to her daughter.

"He hasn't even called to say 'goodnight'," Allie uttered quietly, heartbreakingly. Elena's voice chords couldn't seem to work, she finally said, "Your daddy's just been a little busy, that's all." It wasn't a lie; he was busy – screwing. Her daughter looked up at her hopefully, "Can we call him?" Knowing her daughter was going to be disappointed whether or not Don picked up, Elena nodded, pasting a smile on her face even though she couldn't muster up the enthusiasm to match her daughter's. She dragged her feet, but knew this was bound to happen. She dialed Don's cell for Allie as Allie held the phone eagerly, almost bouncing with anticipation. Allie's face visibly brightened and Elena knew that the call had been accepted, "Daddy!" But the brightness only lasted for a fraction of a second as the little girl's face fell.

"Mommy, did we dial the wrong number?" Elena took the phone from her daughter in confusion, she understood her daughter's puzzlement, she could hear a woman's slurred 'hello's through the earpiece. She gestured for Allie to go brush her teeth and her daughter complied. With Allie out of earshot she said, "Is Don Flack there?" She could hear giggles and moans; they both saddened and sickened her.

"_Flack here."_ She could hear his laughing protests, she swallowed her pain and said tonelessly, "You're busy, I'll just call some other time." Her voice registered.

"_Elena? Just talk now, I'll be even busier later,"_ his tone arrogant and condescending.

"Don Flack don't you dare take that tone with me, if it hadn't been for your daughter I wouldn't be calling at all. Allie asked me if she did something wrong to make you mad at her since you haven't visited her nor attempted to contact her. I didn't have the heart to tell her you were probably too busy screwing your women to call or pick up the phone." Her fire had died as quickly as it had come and all that was left was disappointment. She hung up without another word. She looked up just as Allie came out of the bathroom, "I'm sorry, honey, I must've dialed the wrong number, why don't we try again tomorrow." Her daughter grinned happily. This time, Elena had no qualms about lying to her daughter.

* * *

Another week passed and Elena hadn't bothered trying to call Don, she simply unplugged her phone and told her daughter the phone was broken. She didn't know if Don called, but told herself it was best for her daughter if Don didn't have the opportunity to disappoint her over and over. Lindsay had cringed at Elena's icy fury and hadn't mentioned Don since. Stella was giving Mac the cold shoulder after his temper had exploded when she'd confronted him about the case, she was hurt and even though Mac apologized, Lindsay knew that it hurt Stella infinitely worse because she was seeing the old Mac again.

It wasn't until Lindsay, Stella, and Elena were called out on this case in the wee hours of the morning that things began changing.

* * *

Elena got to the scene and had another sense of déjà vu with the shattered glass everywhere. The victim was a young woman, not much younger than she was, with delicate features and empty eyes open. She felt Sheldon and Stella behind her, "TOD's around 2 in the morning, which is consistent with what Danny and Mac said. The first bullet hit her deltoid before the second bullet sliced open her carotid artery." She began packing and locking her case. She stood and continued to look down at the young woman whose life had been unjustly cut short.

"How can you tell?" Stella asked. Sheldon answered, "Because of the bloody streak marks on her shoulder which suggests she grabbed her shoulder –"

"When she was still alive," Stella finished, smiling. She heard Mac's barking voice and her smile, as well as humor, disappeared altogether. Elena shook her head wryly, she instinctively looked around for Danny and Lindsay and found the couple processing another area, now she did smile. She took the stairs and got to the lobby.

"…thinking about Jess, thinking about the bar, trust me, it's better for me to have something to do." She saw Mac and conversing over surveillance footage, but never broke her stride as she headed out of the building. His blue-gray eyes looked haunted and his loose, dark blue shirt couldn't hide his slumped shoulders.

"Elli!" She continued on as if he hadn't said anything. She didn't know he'd caught up to her until his hand closed around her arm and spun her around to face him. She stepped back from him, "Did you need something, Detective? No, then you'll have your autopsy by tomorrow I believe." She turned to leave.

"I know you're still pissed at me, I'm sorry okay?"

"Why would I be angry, there's no reason, so there's nothing to forgive." She walked away, not wanting to cause a scene by blowing up at him for being so insensitive to Allie, and if she were honest to herself, for lying to her once more. He couldn't follow because a uniform had found something that required his attention.

* * *

Stella fumed as her husband compared the glass shard from the vic's arm to the edges of the window puzzle they'd painstakingly put back together. She wished she hadn't done it now.

"This obsession of yours made you go to that abandoned factory in the middle of the night?" It was a rhetorical question and he knew, but he answered anyway, "It's been a month since the shooting at the bar and we haven't had a single lead, until now."

"So now you're going to spend more nights here trying to find the bastards who put Danny in a wheelchair? You could have gotten hurt, Mac!" Mac didn't answer. Stella felt like crying, she huffed a breath, "I can't take it anymore, you hardly spend any time at home, much less me and our son. I am sick and tired of waiting up for you even knowing you won't be home, of hoping you'll spend your time off with your son." Mac turned to look at her, steel in his eyes.

"Forget it, you're not giving up on this case." Stella spun on her heel, fully intending to go home and pack her bags along with Luke's stuff. Mac grabbed her and pulled her to him so he could wrap his arms around her. He held her even when she pushed and shoved at him, "Stel, you know I can't let this go."

"I know you won't, not that you can't," she bit out through the tears clogging her throat. All the bitterness came tumbling out, "All I know, is that you'd rather focus on these bastards rather than spend time with your own wife and child, that this case takes precedent over keeping your family together!" She _was_ crying now.

"I'm sorry, Stel, I'm sorry," Mac murmured, pressing his lips to his wife's forehead. He held her tight until he finally felt her struggles cease, "I'm sorry, I love you." Stella clutched at Mac's shirt, desperately wanting to believe in those three little words enough to forgive him.

* * *

Elena had walked in on the squabbling, unaware couple, she smiled to herself and backed out quietly, deciding the autopsy report could wait; it wasn't anything Mac didn't know anyway.

* * *

The next day saw the case closed with the defining clang of the holding cells.


	18. Patches

Patches

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Elena, Allie, and the plot.

Author's Note: I've been swamped with schoolwork lately so I haven't been able to write as much as I would like to, but I'll try to update as regularly as possible. Enjoy the chapter and review please!

* * *

"Mommy, is the phone fixed? I really wanna call Daddy." Elena heaved another sigh and resolved that her daughter was as stubborn as both she and Don and would not rest until she got her call. She looked up from the autopsy report to her sniffling, pink-nosed daughter in her flannel pajamas and heard herself saying, "All right, honey, we can see if the phone is working, but first you have to go brush your teeth." She watched Allie scamper off into the bathroom before she plugged the phone back in. She'd already figured the phone couldn't be broken forever, she just didn't think the phone had had adequate time to recover. Apparently her daughter thought a week was enough. The phone beeped to life as her daughter flew out of the bathroom grinning like a loon, "Does it work, does it work, does it work?"

"Hold your horses, I'm dialing." Elena put the receiver to her ear and when the call clicked through, she prayed. For herself or for her daughter she didn't know.

"'_Lo?"_ She breathed a silent sigh of relief and handed the phone to her exuberant daughter.

"Daddy!" Allie squealed, her high-pitch, child's voice ringing with hope and eternal optimism.

Elena wasn't an eternal optimist and still wasn't so sure that Don wouldn't disappoint their daughter again. She kept her eyes on her glowing daughter and decided she'd go take a shower and get ready for bed. Stepping into the shower, she let the hot water wash away her stress and tried not to think. By the time she got out of the shower, she could still ear Allie's little voice, _Gods help me when she actually gets a boyfriend; the phone bills are going to be ridiculous._

She stepped out into the living room and Allie looked up at her, adoration in those silver-blue eyes and all her worries vanished; her daughter was happy and that's all that mattered.

* * *

Don went at the case with his customary intensity, not noticing the time. The squad room was dark, everyone else having gone home already, but he was stumped about the recent killings; how the hell did someone use technology to kill? His ringing phone broke his concentration momentarily. He picked up his phone, "'Lo?" There was a second of silence then he heard his daughter's sweet voice and finally smiled genuinely for the first time since Angell's death. They chatted about school for ten minutes, then Allie finally asked about his absence.

"I'm sorry I haven't been comin' by, I've been really busy."

"_Did I do something wrong, Daddy?"_ Allie's voice suddenly turned somber, serious. Don winced and remembered how pissed Elli had been, now he understood why.

"No, no, of course not, kiddo, Daddy just hasn't been feelin' too good, that's all." It wasn't a lie, he just wasn't feeling any better with the way he'd been trying to.

"_Oh… When I don't feel good Mommy always makes chicken noodle soup."_ Flack chuckled; somehow he doubted something as simple as a bowl of chicken noodle soup would make all his troubles go away.

"_I miss you, Daddy, can you come over tonight?"_ Allie's timid tremor made his heart clench with even more guilt. As gently as he could, he said, "I don't know, Allie, is your mom okay with that?" He heard her say something and assumed she was talking to Elli.

"_Mommy says she'll make the chicken noodle soup for both of us,"_ Allie exclaimed happily. Then he understood why her voice had sounded off, "Allie, why didn't you tell me you were sick," he quickly shoved the file away and grabbed his briefcase, holstering his gun as fast as he could and was out of the station and in his car within 2 minutes. As he drove, he fumed at Elli for not telling him that his daughter was sick, she could be pissed at him but that didn't mean he shouldn't know about his daughter's well-being. At least until he remembered their last telephone conversation.

Okay, so maybe Elli had a reason for not telling him that Allie was sick.

* * *

Elena grumbled a little as she made the noodles from scrap, scraping and slicing the dough pieces skillfully into the pot of boiling soup. _Allie's happy, Don makes Allie happy._ She repeated the mantra over and over again, trying to quell her anger at the man. She could hear the low sounds of the television and the soft coughs in the living room. _Don makes Allie happy._ That was all that mattered. Allie had been so tired and miserable since catching the flu two days ago and the only thing that had brought the sparkle back into her sleepy eyes was her father that she loved so dearly. Elena couldn't deny her that.

Actually, Elena thought wryly, she couldn't deny either of them anything, she did not seem to have the capability to. She was such a glutton for punishment.

* * *

Don got to Elli's apartment in record time, though well within speed limits, and knocked impatiently. The door opened to Elli, her hair pulled back in a low pony tail and dressed in grey sweats and her NYPD t-shirt. She stepped back to let him in and walked off before he could talk to her privately.

Which didn't surprise him in the least; his only consolation was that she actually opened the door.

* * *

Don followed her into the living room where their little girl lay on the couch, buried under blankets and coughing fitfully. Three steaming bowls of chicken noodle soup sat on the coffee table, untouched.

"Daddy," Allie smiles weakly, her face flush from the fever wracking her frail body. Don dropped his overnight bag and picked up his daughter carefully, keeping the blankets around her and cradled her against him and in his lap. Allie simply turned into her father sleepily.

"Honey, you need to eat a little bit so you can take some medicine." Elena fed her daughter small bites, but Allie wouldn't take more than a few bites. Don frowned worryingly, "Allie, sweetie, can you eat a little more for me, please?" Allie blinked unhappily but obediently opened her mouth halfheartedly. Elena fed her another half a bowl then gave her some nasty Tylenol. Allie took another sip of soup to get rid of the taste then curled into her father and fell fast asleep. Elena and Don stood, Elena retreating to the kitchen and Don heading to Allie's room.

* * *

Don wondered how Elli had dealt with their daughter being sick the first time; he was sure she hadn't panicked as he had when he'd seen his daughter so pale and flushed. He sat on his daughter's bed, Allie still in his arms, and leaned back against the headboard and thought about things, a lot of things. He didn't know how long he lay there, lost in his thoughts, he also hadn't realized he was so tired.

* * *

He had stubble. It was her first thought when she opened the door. He looked tired, his clothes rumpled and circles under his dark blue eyes. She hadn't seen him lately, avoided him in fact, and when she'd gotten to the crime scene earlier, he'd left the garden already. All she heard was Stella say, "He used to shave every day." If they'd been on better terms, she might've teased him about it a little. She returned to the living room and found the remaining bowls of soup, still untouched, and Don nowhere in sight. Going to Allie's room, she paused by the doorway and had to smile at the Kodak moment. Allie lay halfway on top of her father's chest while Don slept peacefully on the small bed, his arms around his precious child. _This must be the first night he's actually been able to _sleep, Elena got an extra comforter and flung it gently across her family.

* * *

"You know, what, I think we should have a picnic at the park this weekend; we all need to unwind."

"We concur," Lindsay and Danny exclaimed, "our 10-month-old daughter has been crawling all over the place and we need to find her a bigger playpen." Stella and Mac chuckled, "We agree, Luke's just learning how to crawl, but it's be nice to get out and get some sunshine." Sheldon popped into the break room at that moment, "This isn't just a family outing is it?" Everyone laughed, "You _are_ family, Sheldon, you should know that by now."

"Great," Elena said, smiling, "I'll just let Sid know and we can all have a Mac-Taylor's-Crime-Lab style picnic." Another round of laughter filled the room. Lindsay and Stella caught Elena's eye and smiled gratefully at the M.E., Elena just smirked smugly in return and mouthed, "No problem."

* * *

Saturday morning dawned bright and early in New York City. On this rare day that New York Crime Lab's finest were all off-duty, the gods had given them the perfect weather for a picnic, warm with a slight breeze and not a cloud in the clear blue sky.

"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, wake up, wake up, wake up." Elena felt the mattress dip and bounce with her daughter's weight jumping up and down. She looked at the clock on her bedside table and groaned, "Allie, it's not even 8 yet, the picnic isn't until 2, honey." She'd worked late last night to finish all the reports she had to so she had the weekend to do nothing work-related and had gone to bed not yet 6 hours ago. After her daughter had taken a week to recover from the flu, she'd been back to waking up at ungodly hours and demand her parents' attention. Don had stayed with them for the duration of that one week.

"But Mommy, you have to call Daddy, Mommy!" Elena gave a long suffering sigh that Allie took as surrender. Quick as lightning, Elena had grabbed Allie's legs and pinned her daughter to the bed, blowing raspberries on her tummy and tickling her mercilessly. In the end, Allie conceded to sleeping for an hour longer and mother and daughter slept until 10 o'clock.

Don had picked them up and they were the first ones to arrive. Mac and Stella came next, then Sheldon, Sid and his daughters, Danny and Lindsay, and Adam arrived last. The 3 older children, Allie and Sid's two daughters, raced each other to the playground and the infants climbed skillfully out of their car seats before escaping their parents to explore the beautiful nature around them.

Sheldon had appointed himself babysitter of the hour for Luke Taylor and Lucy Messer. There was plenty of laughter and sunshine, and somehow, Mac knew it was good for Don.


	19. Truths

Truths

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Allie and Elena

Author's Note: I think this is the most fun I've had in a while. Winter Break is in another 3 weeks and yet I find myself more and more stressed, I think that's a problem, a very big problem. Either way, hopefully I'll get to update more often between college visits and stupid applications. There are spoilers from the newest episode, so you have been warned. Read and review please!

* * *

Don hadn't notice his lips splitting into a genuinely happy smile, but Mac had. Stella, Lindsay, and Elena all hovered by the table of food, arguing and laughing while Danny, Sid, Sheldon, and Adam chased after the squealing children.

"It doesn't matter who you lose, a loved one, a stranger, you still feel the loss." Flack started at Mac's quiet voice, as if he'd forgotten his friend was sitting there, "Yeah, I know." Mac watched him silently, his piercing blue eyes calm and omniscient. Don sighed, "Oh, come on, Mac. What do you want me to say? Yeah, I miss Jess like hell. Or yeah, I feel guilty as hell."

"Don, Angell's death wasn't your fault."

"She died trying to save me from myself. That's what makes it worse," he said, his gaze settling on Elena, "Knowing she died because she loved me, but I couldn't love her, not the way she wanted me to." His words sank in and Mac simply looked at him gravely, not in the least surprised. He, of all people, understood that some people only fell in love once. He fell in love with Stella and no one else would do, just as Don fell in love with Elena and no one else could take that special spot in his heart.

"That's why you've been avoiding her? That's not an excuse."

"I know it's not, but after the bar… it scares me, Mac, how much I still love her. I still feel guilty about Jess, but when I thought I was gonna lose Elli, I just…"

"You thought that you could get yourself to stop caring so much if you didn't see her." Don didn't have to answer, his silence spoke louder than words. After an instant, Don shook his head, "That was part of it, the other half: I thought if I stayed away from her, she'd be safe."

"The bar shooting wasn't your fault either, bad things happen, Don."

"Yeah, but bad things happen to people I love. Elli…"

"Don, Elena can take of herself, but if you're honestly that worried about her, leaving her and Allie alone would seem to be rather counterproductive wouldn't it." Mac didn't have to tell him anything that hadn't already occurred to Don. The thoughts just scared him even more, "I go by their apartment every night and sit out there for hours. When Elli leaves the house I'm following her to make sure she and Allie are gonna be okay."

"Do you think she knows?" Mac asked. Don stayed silent for a moment, "No, Elli can be wary, but she hasn't noticed, I'm good at my job." Mac arched a sardonic brow, "That's not necessarily a good thing for you." Stella and Lindsay were heading back towards them and Don clammed up.

"What were you two macho men talking about?" Stella asked, playfully suspicious.

"Women," Don and Mac replied succinctly. Stella and Lindsay laughed as Stella attempted to gently smack Mac. Don chuckled as Danny collapsed onto the blanket beside his wife, "I'm gettin' old," he muttered, slightly breathless. Elena joined the group, "You know, Danny, you just finished physical therapy a couple months ago and chasing the children around would probably be considered exertion in medical books." Danny smiled sheepishly, "It's just good to be out of that damn chair." They all smiled.

"Mommy, Daddy!" Allie hurled herself at her quick parents and Don caught her half against him as Elena held Allie as well. This forced both of them to sit closer and Don slid an arm around Elena, Mac smiled at the sight, hoping his friend had made up his mind. Allie wanted a piggyback ride and Don released Elena to play with the kids. Elli shook her head ruefully and turned back to her friends. Mac was watching her with those unreadable cerulean blue eyes.

* * *

"Do you love Don?"

Elena didn't start or hesitate.

"Does it matter?" Elena asked Mac in return, keeping her hands busy with making her hot dog, "He loves Angell. It's not loved, past tense, because she's not really gone, not to him."

She sighed quietly, sadly, "I can't give Angell back to him, I can't replace Jess."

"Do you still love him?" Elena took a deep breath and met Mac's probing gaze, "No." Mac's frown deepened, his eyes narrowing, unconvinced. She stared back impassively, trying to hide the rapid pulse of her heart, her erratic breathing. She so desperately wanted to believe her conviction in that monosyllable, that one tiny word that could help her move on and live her life. Her boss and friend continued to stare at her with that penetrating look.

* * *

Mac Taylor, for the first time in his life, conceded defeat; he couldn't read Elena, and though he was a human lie detector, he couldn't tell if she was lying, he didn't think _she_ could tell if she was lying.

* * *

Elena had to hold back her sigh of relief when Mac finally looked away. She didn't want to think about it because it confused and hurt her. She wasn't sure if she could ever forgive Don, all she knew was _Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me_. She'd made the mistake of actually believing that he wouldn't hurt her again and now she had to deal with the aftermath.

"He's in love with you, always has been."

"Yeah, he definitely knows how to show it," she replied sarcastically.

* * *

Mac didn't say anything; he had no excuse for his friend's behavior. He understood the turmoil Elena was going through, understood that she didn't want to forgive Don but couldn't stop loving him.

"I don't have an excuse for him, but you know him better than I do," he said, "you know it's not Angell he loves otherwise he wouldn't be avoiding you." He exhaled deeply, "He's afraid for you, he's got it into his head that everyone he loves is going to die, he's scared he'll lose you." Elena said nothing, knowing it was impossible even though it wouldn't be that far of a stretch for Don. Stella chose to come over at that exact moment of silence, "Is a second chance that much to ask for?"

"He hasn't asked for one, nor will he. I get that you all love him dearly and would love to see him happy again, but only Angell could bring that smile to his face, he'll be happy again once he heals."

"He'd heal a lot faster with a doctor," Don said over Elena's shoulder. Elena jumped ten feet in the air and nearly dropped her hot dog. She was usually much more alert and aware of her surroundings but she hadn't heard Don sneak up behind her. Wondering how much he'd heard and judging by the looks of varying amusement on her friends' faces, he most likely walked in on the last bit of that conversation – which meant she could still get out of it.

"Donald Flack, I am going to kill you if you sneak up on me like that again." She groused, spearing him with a menacing glare. She took a bite of her hot dog, intending to walk off, except Stella, Mac, and Don had her all but cornered into the table. She'd never, in her entire life, been so thankful for Allie's habit of meddling in her life when her daughter called out, "Daddy, are you kissing mommy?" Embarrassing as it was, it gave Elena the excuse to put her hot dog down and go after her mischievous daughter. She tackled Allie in retaliation and practically glued herself to the children for the rest of the day, effectively avoiding anymore awkward conversations.

She never remembered the hot dog she'd left by the table.

* * *

Elena counted today as a good day, Don and Mac had caught the Compass Killer, though none of the lab had left the lab for 48 hours straight. Pensively, she washed up and changed, waving goodbye to Sid when she saw him. Hollis Eckhart hadn't been a monster in the true sense; he was a damaged man who lost his life on the same day he'd been given it. Her heart ached for the man even if it didn't excuse him from his actions, she couldn't imagine the horror of living through something so traumatic that it shattered the human mind so completely.

"Elena!" She turned to see Sid hurrying to catch up with her, it was then that she noticed he was dressed up a bit more than usual. She smiled, teasing him, "Hot date tonight?" Sid laughed, "Actually, Stella dropped by when you were in autopsy; we're supposed to meet the others for a celebratory dinner tonight." She shook her head, only a tad remorseful, "Sorry, Sid, I promised Allie we'd get ice cream and watch movies." Sid chuckled, "Don knew you'd say that, he told me to tell you that Allie's with her aunt and demanded to sleep over at Samantha's." Elena gave in, knowing that she couldn't argue using her clothes as an excuse as her entire wardrobe was versatile enough for almost any situation. She conceded and trailed Sid's car since she didn't know which restaurant they were going to. Glancing ruefully down at her khaki trousers, strappy, 3-inch, sandals, and black, cowl-neck blouse, she knew she couldn't get out of dinner – knew she couldn't keep avoiding Don.

* * *

Elena wasn't obstinate enough to deny that she'd had fun, wryly admitting to herself that the whole team had honestly become more important to her than her biological family had in the 16 years they'd lived together. She hated the relief and warmth that spread through her when she finally saw a smile light Don's silver-blue eyes, the twinkles in those bright orbs dancing merrily. Everyone was laughing, food passed around, food gobbled, just happiness all around. As the team ushered Sid and Elena into a chair, Elena found herself joined at the hip to Don. Neither Elena nor Don seemed to notice that his arm naturally curled around her shoulders or that she instinctively leaned in closer, but the CSIs and the other ME did. In all honesty, Mac had indeed hoped that tonight's celebratory dinner would help Don and Elena resolve some of their issues.

_Hoped_ being the keyword.


	20. Questions and Memories

Questions and Memories

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Elena and Allie.

Author's Note: Sorry for the late update, but I've been contemplating just ending the story 1) because I have writer's block and 2) a lot of you people don't review and so I have no idea what to do. This will likely be the last chapter, so read and review, please!

* * *

"Are they going to be okay?" Stella asked Mac, watching Elena drive off in one car and Don in another, "They're going in completely different directions."

"I'm sure things will work out in the end, Stel, now we have to get back to our son." Mac firmly steered his wife to their SUV and helped her into the passenger seat. Mac knew that the chances were fairly slim and he was being optimistic when he figured Don would have a 20% chance of reconciling with Elena. Mac wasn't naïve, he knew Elena was rather gun shy and Don had indeed screwed things up with that binge stint, so he could only pray for his friends, he didn't like seeing them so miserable even with Elena's happy façade and Don's determined indifference.

* * *

"Aunt Sam? Is Mommy still mad at Daddy?" Samantha froze, half digging with the ice cream scoop, "What makes you say that?"

"I don't know, I see other mommies and daddies together and they look so happy, but Mommy and Daddy don't look like that. They don't hug and kiss, they don't come home together, and they're not like Uncle Mac and Auntie Stella."

"Allie, that doesn't mean they're mad at each other. They still tuck you into bed every night, they hug and kiss you, and they play with you all the time." Sam made a mental note to tell Elena, the older woman was probably more adept at dealing with the situation than her thick-headed brother. Sam tried to distract the little girl with rocky road ice cream and Disney movies and barely succeeded.

* * *

"How was she?" Elena whispered to Sam, Allie sound asleep in the bundle of blankets.

"What's going on between you and Don, Elena? I'm asking because Allie brought it up today. She asked me if you were still mad at Don and said that you two don't act like other parents." Elena sighed, "What do you want me to say, Sam? Allie's right, we don't act like other parents because we aren't like other couples." Elena looked towards her daughter and simply said, "I'm not sure we ever will be."

"But you could, Elena, just give Don a second chance."

"I already did, and you know, the funny thing is, if Angell hadn't… if Don hadn't gone on that little binge, Allie might have gotten her wish. But then I had to wonder, was I doing it for her, did I want a relationship to work out because of Allie, because Allie needs her father?" Sam was shocked into silence, then with her heart in her throat, "Were you?"

"I don't know, I really don't know, what I do know, is that a relationship without trust isn't a relationship at all, and if you force it, there can't be a happy ending. All I know now, is that I can trust Don with my life, but not with my heart, he's a great friend, but I'm not sure I believe in the saying 'third time's a charm' I'm actually quite confident in saying I don't."

* * *

Don sulked around his apartment, wanting to go to Elli and his little girl. A knock sounded at the door and he opened it. "Hawkes? What are you doing here; I thought you were meetin' someone tonight?"

"I should be asking you that, shouldn't you be over at Elena's, maybe reconciling?" Sheldon moved past Don into the dark living room and turned to level an exasperated glare at Don, a very matter-a-fact expression on his face, "Mac told me Stella was worried about you two and wanted me to drop by to check on you. What is it you're really scared of, Don?"

"Don't know what you're talkin' 'bout."

"Yes you do, and I have a sudden suspicion that Mac knows too. What is it, man, why are you doing this to yourself, and her? Look, if you want someone to love you, you have to be able to love someone first, be able to put yourself at risk and give them 110%, I learned that the hard way. I never pegged you for a commitment phobic, so what it is it?"

"I screwed up, I can't ask Elli to give me another chance because she's already given me too many. 'Sides, I don't think she'll be as quick to forgive this time. I don't deserve her."

"Don, we're human, we're not perfect. People are bound to make mistakes, what's important is that we learn from them. Get back up where you fell, Don, basic rule of life. If you have one fault, it's that you gave up too easily. The night of the charity ball, you had a chance, we were all surprised when you started dating Angell, so try again, and this time don't let go." Sheldon left after his little piece, leaving Don to wonder how in the hell he was supposed to do that when he still could find the courage to face her full on. Pacing around his apartment became too confining so he wandered around aimlessly in the frigid streets of New York.

* * *

Elena settled her daughter in her room and went back out to the living room to drink a cup of tea and relax. In the back of her mind, her conversation with Sam replayed like a broken tape. She stopped focusing on the things Don had done to deserve her ire and began thinking about what he hadn't done, and a wistful smile began playing around her lips.

~ _Flashbacks_ ~

"_Papi, I wanna go on the swings," Elena laughed, enjoying her freedom for as long as it would last. Her grandfather indulged her exuberance, helping her onto a swing and pushing her gently._

"_Hey, Gramps, that swing kinda curves, it might be safer if you put her on the other one." Elena was surprised; no one had spoken to her grandfather like that before. She turned around to look at the boy who'd spoken. Elena looked at the lanky boy, there was something in his silver-blue eyes that told her he was wiser than his years, she remembered seeing something on TV, street-smart, that's the word. She learned early on not to judge people she didn't know, and she didn't know this boy, but she could tell he wasn't a bad kid like her older brothers. She'd hopped off the swing once it stopped and watched as her grandfather went over to the boy dangling his legs over the top of the slide. Her open curiosity had been hard to hide and she soon found herself buying two popsicles from the ice cream stand and offering him one tentatively. It'd been a tenuous beginning, but once they became friends, they were nearly inseparable._

_Elena was running late getting back home because she'd had to re-do her science project that her older sister had shattered into pieces, she was trying to get to the school's main entrance where she knew Don would be waiting for her, even though she'd told him not to, as fast as she could. She was staring at the ground when she suddenly ran into a solid wall and fell backwards, her books and papers scattering across the blacktop. 3 shadows loomed over her and she felt her stomach sink, they were the biggest bullies at the school and worse, they were her brothers' friends. She stammered and scrambled to pick up her stuff, "I–I'm so-sorry." When she tried to squeeze around them, they grabbed her thin shoulder in their ham-fist hands and slammed her against the wall, demanding things like her lunch money, her math homework and such. She was terrified, she was tiny compared to the three 130-pound monsters, she barely weighed 50 pounds._

"_Hey, why don't you pick on someone your own size?" Elena felt the dread seep into her bones; hearing Don's voice was comforting, but her brothers had already managed to get Don in trouble and the principal had said that if she caught Don in a fight again, Don would get suspended. The bullies turned to face the skinny teenager, Elena stood behind them, tears in her moss green eyes, shaking her head frantically. They advanced on Don but Don stood his ground, staring them down._

"_You boys are in so much trouble!" _

_Elena jumped at the shrill shriek, then she saw Don's smug grin._

"_But Ms. Wyndham, we didn't do anything. He was causing trouble," the three protested. The dean's sallow face had whitened and her thin lips looked like two red lines in her face, "He did nothing of the sort, he came to me not 5 minutes ago and told me you three were bullying poor Elena." Her expression softened as she turned to Elena, "Are you all right, dear?" Elena gulped and shot a fearful look at the three boys and squeaked out, "Yes." The dean understood and dragged the bullies back to her office by the ears to call their parents._

"_Did they hurt you, Elli?" She shook her head and crouched to pick up the rest of her stuff._

"_Hey now, don't pout. I'll be careful, I promise, 'sides, if I got suspended, who else would protect you?" Don grinned, ruffling her hair like a real older brother. She smiled reluctantly in return and he walked her home._

_She and Don scrambled up the ladder into the tree house they'd built with Papi's help. It was the summer of 6__th__ grade and Don's dad had rewarded him for not getting into trouble all year by giving him the freedom of not working for one month, so for that one month, they slaved over the tree house and now, lying spread-eagle on the blanket they laid out, they were exhausted but exhilarated. Don sat up and had her scoot over so her head was propped against his thigh and he ran his fingers through her mahogany locks. They stayed in that position, watching the sun set over the little pond right by the tree, just talking and being kids._

_High school had come and gone so quickly, they were approaching their Senior Prom and Graduation dates in a flurry of activity. Not much had changed though, she was till the freaky genius girl nobody wanted to talk to and Don was the popular sporty guy with a new girl on his arm every other week. She was on her own in the gym, hanging the banners for Prom and finishing up the decorations, so absorbed in her work that she failed to notice that some of the tissue paper sitting on the top step had unraveled so that she was actually stepping on it, she shifted on her tip toes to tape an edge of the banner and felt her feet slip out from under her and she was falling. She didn't have time to scream, but she made an odd, strangled noise before Don caught her safely. She breathed a sigh of relief and Don released the breath he'd been holding. He set her on the ground and frowned sternly, "Elli, what on earth were you doing up there, you could've killed yourself!" Elena rolled her eyes, "Don't be so melodramatic Don, the worst that could've happened was that I'd break my arm. Aren't you supposed to be out celebrating with the football team, by the way?" She suddenly looked suspicious, "You're not _hiding_ are you?" Most of the girls Don had gone out with blamed Elena when Don dumped them, no one understood how their friendship worked or why they were so close, but Don always used Elena as an excuse when he thought the girl was getting too clingy. Don shook his head and gave her an innocent look, "Nope, not me."_

"_Uh huh, I believe you," Elena replied, about to climb up the ladder again._

"_Nuh uh, you are not gettin' back on there." Don said firmly, nudging her back and scaling the ladder himself. He helped her finish up the decorations and even offered to help her clean up._

"_Okay, what's the catch? The Donald Flack Jr. I know _hates_ cleaning up, but you just _offered_? Something is seriously wrong with this picture." A high-pitched noise came from outside the gym. He grabbed Elena and covered her mouth._

"…_I couldn't find him anywhere."_

"_I know, I thought he was supposed to go to the party with us but he's not there."_

"_Let's go see if he's in the pool." The voices trailed further away and Don cautiously removed his hand. Elena smirked at him, "Oh, is that so? Are you telling me that King-of-the-Jungle Donald Flack is actually afraid of a couple of cheerleaders?" _

"_What?! They were trying to corner me into going to prom with one of them."_

"_You say that like it's a chore, Don," Elena laughingly replied._

"_It is! I don't wanna go with them!"_

"_Don, of all the school dances you've been to you've been forced to partner with me, this is your last prom, go ask Lindsay Kurt out, didn't you say she seemed pretty nice." She was sweeping the scraps into the dustpans while Don picked up the larger garbage and began shooting hoops with them into the trash can, "Just 'cause I said she seemed pretty nice doesn't mean I wanna go to prom with her." Elena sighed exasperatedly, "Ugh, then who _do_ you want to go with?"_

"_You," he answered stubbornly with a childlike air. Elena raised an eyebrow, "Seriously, Don."_

"_I am being serious, Elli." The tone in his voice had gone from petulant and joking to somber and gentle. The shift caused Elena to look up sharply in surprise; in the 10 years she'd known Don, she'd never seen him so serious before, "Okay," she said, drawing out the word, "Are you _really_ that scared of those girls?" He scowled at her, shot the last paper ball into the trash can and stalked towards her. Elena, thinking he was playing with her again, scrambled out of reach. His eyes held a different light, and if Elena hadn't known any better, she'd have said it was predatory rather than mischievous. He cornered her then pounced when she tried to get past him, "Okay, okay, you win!" But Don wasn't tickling her, he was holding her and still staring at her with a very grave expression, "Don, are you sure you're okay, you're scaring me."_

"_I don't wanna go to prom with anyone else but you." He'd said quietly, holding her closer and closer, then he leaned down and kissed her._

~ _End Flashbacks_ ~

Elena was pulled off memory lane by her buzzing phone, the caller ID said it was Don calling. She answered the phone, "What's up?"

"_Did I wake you?"_

"No, I wasn't asleep yet. Where are you, it sounds like you're on the streets."

"_I am. I couldn't sleep so I figured I'd take a walk."_

"In the frigid cold? Don, it must be below zero out there."

"_Are you offerin' to warm me up?"_ She could hear the uncertainty in his voice, "Where are you?"

"_Outside your apartment."_ Elena was quiet for a while, she still wasn't sure how she felt, but she knew if she didn't take this step, she'd never find out.

* * *

Silence. He took her hesitation to mean he wasn't welcome and closed his eyes against the turmoil, his face upturned in the biting chill. He walked past the entrance and time slowed to a crawl, every step he took was a taking him a mile away from his future, and every stride were the years he would miss of the life he could have had.

He put his hands up to shield his eyes from the blinding light and all he could hear was a droning horn.

* * *

The increasing volume of the car horn drained Elena's face of all colors and she cursed her moment of hesitation, "Don? Don?" She wasn't even sure he was still on the phone. She didn't care that she was still in her flannel pajamas and slippers or that she forgot her coat, in any case, she ran like the wind, willing the elevator to hurry up and when it didn't come immediately, she raced down the stairs as fast as she could. The doorman was talking about an accident at the intersection: someone got hit by a drunk taxi driver. Her heart plummeted. She hurried out onto streets and tried to squeeze her way through the crowd. She got to the front and saw that the man who'd been hit by the taxi had only received minor injuries and more importantly, the man wasn't Don. She exhaled deeply. The crowd dispersed and she turned around. He stood there, safe and whole...

* * *

Yada, yada, yada, it's a happy ending all around, but I can't bring myself to write it out because it's SOOO cheesy, I'll post that last bit if I get enough reviews.

Toodles!


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